Where Golden Flowers Bloom
by SevenRenny
Summary: While at a cat cafe, Ochaco gets dragged into a misunderstanding, and she ends up with a phone number of a green-eyed boy. Intending on fixing things, she finds herself befriending him. He has dedicated himself to helping Eri, a little girl with a protective cage over her heart. Ochaco wouldn't mind lending a hand. IzuOcha, where Izuku doesn't attend UA. He has someone to protect.
1. Chapter 1: Flower Park

_Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia._

 _Note: A character from chapter 136 is present (Ch136 spoilers)_

 _Note: This story takes a few different paths. Explanations will be provided throughout the story as you read on._

 _Note: This is pretty much slice-of-life_

 _Warnings: mentions of depression, mental illness, child abuse, panic attacks, bullying, suicide and dark themes_

* * *

 **Where Golden Flowers Bloom**

 **Chapter 1 - Flower Park**

 **SevenRenny**

Visiting random places was a habit she'd developed to ease her mind. It was easy to just say _'calm down, silly – it'll be fine!'_ but she already felt homesick. After moving into her own tiny apartment, Ochaco had missed hugging her parents. She missed the food they would cook together and she sort of longed for her father's lame puns. Oh, well. She had to handle living alone. She couldn't always depend on them. She would be an adult someday, so she had to get used to this.

She'd originally made the move because UA was too far from her home. Her parents wouldn't need to work so hard. She'd become a hero and share the money with them. They deserved an easier life. The move had been stressful, and she hadn't been able to sleep comfortably the first few nights; but things were getting easier. The people around here were welcoming, and she realized spending time with friends was a good way to relieve stress.

"Hey, hey, check this out!" Mina held a plastic devil mask in front of her face. The devil's eyeballs suddenly popped out, bouncing and waving around, hanging loosely to the mask by weak springs.

Toru released high pitched _'Eeep!'_ and Mina grinned triumphantly. The little shop in the corner wasn't anything special; just a small side shop they'd come across while walking together. Most of the items on sale were cheap kiddy toys, caps, umbrellas, greeting cards, and things one would find in an arts and crafts store.

They hadn't been planning to buy anything, but Toru just had to have that smiling onigiri plush keychain.

Her friends from UA were interesting. Aside from that Bakugo boy, most of her classmates were friendly, and while some students, like Todoroki and Tokoyami, were more on the reserved side, they were still easy to talk to and befriend. She'd quickly become friends with the girls, and Ochaco didn't have problems interacting with the other students.

However, Bakugo was the only kid she couldn't manage to befriend, and due to his explosive nature, she'd decided to keep her distance from him. The class had nineteen students, and the desk behind Bakugo was the only empty one. The blond was angry at almost everyone and everything, but she wasn't one to judge.

The shop owner's fat Shiba Inu watched by its owner's feet as Ochaco, Mina and Toru exited the shop without buying anything else. The dog plopped its head down by the old shopkeeper's shoes, too lazy to do normal dog things.

"Do you think it's around here somewhere?" Toru asked excitedly.

Mina slipped out the little card from her skirt pocket. Pictures of cartoony looking cats decorated the card. On one side, there were five paw prints, with the last had the word _'free'_ written over it. On the other side of the card was a map leading to the place.

Mina stopped walking, concentrating on the card. "Sooo… yea, it has to be on the right turn here." She slipped the card back in her pocket and started skipping faster than the two other girls. "C'mon, slowpokes!" The pink girl yelled back at them.

"Hey!" Toru started running after her.

"Wait up!" Ochaco smiled, speeding up as well.

Sure enough, there it was. The cat climbing post and sleeping cats by the window was a dead giveaway.

"So _cute!_ " Toru cooed at the white cat inside the café. Ochaco beamed at the sight of so many fluff balls peeking at them from the other side of the glass. The door dinged as they walked in.

"Welcome," said an orange-haired employee. "Is this your first visit?" he asked, smiling kindly.

"Yup!" Toru nodded, though the guy probably didn't see that.

He chuckled. "Alright then." He showed them a list. "These are the things you can't bring in with you. Just leave them in the baskets. And place your shoes over there. Just grab a few slippers. Make sure to use the hand sanitizer before going in."

As Ochaco hadn't brought any 'dangly' accessories with her, she bend down and took off her shoes, sliding them into a shoe rack. From the opposite rack, she took a pair of dull slippers.

"Man, I didn't think we'd have to do all of this before going in," Mina complained, taking off her bracelets and dropping them in a mini basket. "Makes sense, I guess. Don't want them getting messed with in there."

"Do you have the card?" the employee asked.

"Oh, right here!" Mina handed it over. The man stamped over one of the paw prints on the card before giving it back to Mina. After reviewing the café rules, they were allowed in.

"Waaaah!" Toru gasped in astonishment as soon as they walked in. The cat café was cat paradise. Climbing posts were at every corner. Nest-shaped cat beds were attached to the windows so the cats could get a view of the outside world. There were little steps attached to the walls that functioned as platforms for the cats to climb up.

The cats were everywhere; some slept on the wooden floor, some were on the tables meant for the guests who wanted to order drinks, and some made use of the climbing posts. The girls wasted no time messing around.

"You. Are. _Freaking cute!_ " Mina kneeled and a grey tabby with a smooshed in face came up to rub around her. It pushed itself on his hind legs to rub the crown of its head under her chin. Toru got on the floor to be surrounded by cats climbing over her. The shy cats stayed at a safer distance and opted to just watch.

Ochaco's apartment had a no-pet policy, and even if she could somehow have a furry cuddle buddy, she knew she wouldn't be able to afford one. After training at UA and going through one exam after another, Ochaco just wanted to cuddle something. The stress had worn her out, and she needed something to lift up her spirits again.

She was glad to accompany her friends here.

A long-haired tortoiseshell cat came up to her. "Hey!" Ochaco greeted it, sitting on the floor to be closer to it. It sniffed her face and bumped noses with her. "You're so cute! Oh, you have I name! Can I see?" Ochaco realized once she saw the tag attached to its pink collar. The name _MANA_ was engraved there.

"Hey, Mana," Ochaco cooed at it, petting it, keeping her thumb out of the way. She didn't want to accidentally float the poor cat. The old female cat climbed on her lap and began kneading Ochaco's pants with her claws, purring. Ochaco slowly placed her hand on the cat's back, feeling the rumble of the purr through her hand.

"You guys are living the life," Mina told the group of short-haired cats. "Eat. Sleep. Play. Man, you guys have it easy, don't ya'?"

As if understanding her words, a grey Scottish Fold meowed at her.

"Girls, look!" Toru called out from the corner of the room. The vending machine in front of her buzzed before dropping a package. The invisible girl reached in and took out a small bag of treats. "They give kitty treats here!"

The cats around Mina immediately ran for Toru, crowding around her invisible legs. Toru squealed when a brown tabby decided to use her as a climbing post to reach the treats in her hand. It sat on her her shoulder and pawed at the bag, trying to get to it. "Okay, okay, hold on!" She laughed.

Mina snickered. "You have food, now they all love you."

"It _tickles!_ " Toru giggled hysterically when the cat sniffed her ear.

"If only hot boys were that easy to attract…" Mina sighed in an exaggerated manner. "I need to get laid."

Ochaco sweat dropped, but managed to smile weakly. They were in a cat café, but her friend still managed to talk about 'getting laid' and how it was hard to find dates while being a UA student.

" _Izuku…"_ a little girl whimpered. A teenage boy and a little girl were by the tables a few feet away. From where she was sitting with the old cat still on her lap, Ochaco could see the green-haired boy sitting with the girl on his lap. A black Persian cat was on the table in front of them, curled up next to a cup of coffee.

The little girl – who seemed to have a horn on her head – looked afraid of the creature. The girl was wearing long sleeves and a blue dress with little black shoes and long white socks. The cat stretched, and the girl sunk back into the boy's chest for protection. The freckled-faced boy smiled gently and reached out to calmly brush the cats back with his hand. The girl blinked at the cat, then up at the older boy.

He gave her an encouraging smile. "See? It's okay!"

The little girl looked back at the flat faced Persian. Swallowing, she slowly lifted a shaky hand to touch it, but stopped halfway. She saw the boy's hand over the cat's fur and slowly placed her hand over his.

The child sighed a little when the cat didn't react.

The boy chuckled. "It won't hurt you. I promise." He slowly slipped his hand from beneath hers, and gently placed it over her hand so she was touching the fur. She stilled, but didn't pull away, trusting the older boy. He slowly guided her hand in a petting motion, stroking the cat. It closed its yellow eyes and began purring.

The girl stared at it in awe, her eyes widening. Looking up at the boy, he grinned sweetly at her.

"You're doing great, Eri!" He told her proudly.

The child felt a flutter of joy in her chest. The boy – Izuku – withdrew his hand, and she was brave enough to keep petting the sleeping cat.

"Warm," the child whispered. She'd thought fluffy things felt like plush toys. She was wrong. This animal was warm and soft and moving and _alive._ The cat's chest gently swelled and deflated, breathing in its sleep.

As quietly as he could, Izuku brushed the long fur aside and saw the green collar. "His name's Michi. Hey, Michi!" The boy – Izuku – scratched the cat between the ears.

"Michi…" Eri repeated, not believing this creature actually had a name, just like how people had names. This wasn't like the stuffed toys she used to have. It was clear this animal was, in some ways, like her and her big brother. Izuku had said _'he'_ , not _'it'_ , and Eri slowly came to understand toys and animals weren't the same thing.

"Hey, Michi," she greeted the cat softly, copying her older brother.

The green-haired boy chuckled happily.

Ochaco, who had observed the whole thing, couldn't help but smile as well. It was a cute sight, really.

She watched as another cat – one with short white fur and grey markings – came up to them. At first, it spotted Michi's tail dangling from the table and started batting at it, but then turned its attention to the girl and the green-haired boy. Placing its paws on Izuku's chair, the cat stood on its hind legs and stretched its neck.

The child backed away fearfully and looked up at the older boy for guidance.

"It's okay, look," he said, placing his hand on the grey cat's head. It tilted slightly so that Izuku was rubbing one of its cheeks. "It's nice like Michi. See?"

Trusting him completely, Eri was much braver this time, reaching out and placing her palm over the cat's other cheeks. It squinted its eyes and purred. Eri smiled in wonder.

Ochaco giggled lightly, looking down at the old cat on her lap. "They're having fun, huh, Mana?" She truly loved seeing such wonderful scenes. That boy and that child were only two people out of so many in this world.

"You done ogling that guy over there?" Mina suddenly whispered in her ear.

Ochaco squealed in surprise. The cat on her lap jolted and snapped to look up at the humans. "W-Wh-Wha – Ashido?"

Mina grinned. "Seriously, girl? I was complaining how I can't find boys, and you already have your eyes on one?" she teased.

Ochaco blushed at the accusation. "W-What? No! It's not – it's not like that! I just… it was just… it was cute?" Not a very specific explanation, but that was all her mouth could say.

"I'm sure he is. So? Are ya gonna get his number?" Mina asked eagerly, dropping an arm around Ochaco's neck.

"Wait – wait, I said it's not – it's–"

"Oh, don't go all _'I wasn't staring at a cute boy'_ on me now! Is he even cute? Let me see!" Not giving Ochaco a chance to speak, Mina peeked over her friend to get a proper look at him.

While the one horned girl peacefully stroked Michi's fur, the curly-haired boy was talking on his phone. Squinting and failing to get a proper look at his face, Mina brought out her own phone, opened up the camera app, zoomed in on his face, and waited until his face wasn't so pixilated on screen before she took a picture.

"Ashido!" Ochaco squirmed, realizing her friend had pretty much taken a picture of a stranger. Ochaco was sure she would freak out if there was someone taking pictures of her without her knowledge.

Mina plopped down next to her, examining the picture intensely. "Mmm… not hot but… kinda cute, I guess?" she said, more to herself. "Here, I'll send it to you so you don't have to keep staring at him."

"Ah – w-wait, Ashido!" Ochaco waved her hands frantically, panicking. "Don't–"

"Done!" Mina declared.

Ochaco's phone dinged, signaling the arrival of the photo Mina had sent. The gravity girl froze like a statue. Her shoulders sagged in defeat. Mina had a strong personality. It was hard to redirect her focus, but she was still a fun friend to have, and Ochaco was grateful for that.

"Ehh… thanks… Ashido," she said nervously. "But I don't think I'll be needing it–"

"SHH!" Mina shushed her, noticing the boy and his little companion getting up.

"Come on, Eri," he incouraged her gently with a sweet smile on his face, stuffing the phone back in his pocket. "Mom's waiting. Are you ready to go home?" He offered her his hand, which she took immediately. She looked up at him and gave him a simple nod.

"Say bye to Michi."

Still holding on to his hand, the girl looked back at the sleepy cat and waved at him. "Bye, Michi," she said sadly. The cat flicked its ear.

"We'll come back again later. Would you like that, Eri?"

She perked up at that, nodding and gripping his hand in gratitude.

He chuckled.

Mina gripped Ochaco's shoulder and shook her carelessly. "He's leaving; he's leaving – go after him!"

"Wh- what? I can't. I – I don't e-even know him!" Ochaco stuttered.

"Then get to know him! Go!" Mina encouraged, grabbing the other girl by the arm and heaving her up. The old cat jumped off of Ochaco's lap.

"Ashido!" Ochaco dug her heels into the ground, but Mina kept pushing her forward. "St – stop! Hold on! A-Ashido, wait! _Ashido!_ "

Mina tried to hook her arms under Ochaco's to lift her up, but paused as soon as she heard Toru. The invisible girl was chatting excitedly to the boy. He blinked at her in confusion and the child hid behind him.

Toru's gloved hand pointed at their direction and Ochaco almost yelped: _don't point over here!_ By now, it was clear who Toru was talking about. The boy looked over at the two girls – With Mina still holding Ochaco – and looked down shyly, blushing and rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. He reached into his back pocket, pulled out a small notepad and used the pen from his shirt pocket to write something down, his fingers shaking. While he was distracted, Toru turned and silently gave the two girls thumbs-ups.

He tore out the paper and shyly gave it to her, rubbing the back of his neck and refusing to look up.

"Thanks!" Toru sang happily, skipping back to the two girls.

As the young man limped – yes, _limped_ – over to the exit with the little girl, Ochaco noticed the ankle-foot brace sticking out from his right shoe.

"I got his number for you!" Toru said happily, waving the paper around like a praised trophy. "He was so sweet. I told him my friend was too shy to talk to him. He didn't mind giving his number. Here!"

"Eh?" was all Ochaco could say as her mind slowly digested what had happened.

Mina released her and took the paper. "Hagakure. You. Are. A. Genius!"

"Eeehhh!" Ochaco cupped her reddening face, realizing just what had happened.

"Hey, look! He wrote his name, too!" Mina showed Ochaco the paper. Sure enough, beneath the number was the name _Izuku Midoriya._ While Ochaco was busy recovering from the thought of receiving a random boy's number, Mina opened Ochaco's palm and forced the paper into her hand.

"You're welcome!" Mina said, grinning.

She came for the cats, and left with a boy's phone number…

She should apologize… but how? What could she say whiteout sounding like an idiot? _Hi, I'm that girl from the cat café earlier. Remember? Not the invisible one. That was my friend! Just wanted to say sorry she asked for your number –_ Ochaco shook her head. That wouldn't work.

What was she trying to apologize for anyway? For getting his number? For not talking to him herself? She hadn't talked to him, and he was willing to give her his number. She remembered the way he'd blushed while writing it down. He had been flustered over a girl asking for his number.

Back at her apartment, standing half naked, wearing just her shorts and bra, she sat on the edge of her bed and flipped open her phone. The first thing that came up was the notification bar reading: _Ashido sent one image_.

Oh. His photo. Now she remembered. She should delete that. He wouldn't want a stranger having a picture of him. Looking at the picture, she paused. He wasn't anything special. She'd seen people with animal Quirks, and Quirks that affected their physical appearance, so this green-haired boy was – at the very least – average looking, but there was something about him… something, like the glint in his eyes that reflected innocence, forgiveness, and the will to protect. And that smile was just too tender and loving. She knew it was just her mind reminding her that smiling was a human gesture that meant friendliness and happiness, but there was something more here… something she felt, but couldn't describe…

Maybe she'd keep the picture, for now.

…

"You _what?_ " Mina slammed her hands down, slapping Ochaco's desk. "You didn't call him? Did you at least text?"

Ochaco laughed awkwardly. Honestly, she hadn't expected her friend to ask her about it so early in the morning. "I… didn't know what to say?" Well, that wasn't a lie, at least.

However, it wasn't what Mina wanted to hear. The pink girl face-palmed. "Gurl, he gave you his number. His interested! At least text him or something; he's probably been waiting since yesterday!"

She _had_ thought about it, but her embarrassment prevented her from typing anything. She thought she could just befriend him, but he probably thought she wanted to ask him out. What if he had been waiting for a call from her? But she still couldn't bring herself to do it. She wasn't interested in him in _that way._ She didn't even know who he was!

Today. She'd call him and explain she just wants to be friends with him. There. It would be a hard task, but it would fix the problem.

The classroom door slid open. "Alright, you lot. Sit down," Aizawa ordered with zero enthusiasm. Ochaco still didn't know how to feel about her homeroom teacher. He'd threatened to expel the student with the lowest score, but never actually went through with it. Because of his emotionless expression, he was hard to read. He was a good teacher, but he also had high expectations.

Then there was All Might, their Hero Studies teacher. He was enthusiastic and positive, but he tended to make little mistakes here and there. He was obviously not used to teaching, and when an exercise got out of hand, he would step in a little too late. He also had a habit of disappearing right after classes, not giving students a chance to ask him questions.

As for herself, Ochaco considered herself… maybe slightly below average. Compared to students like Todoroki, Bakugo and Yaoyorozu, Ochaco felt like her Quirk was too weak to fit into the world of Pro Heroes. She couldn't attack with it, and without touching her enemy, it was useless.

As for grades, she wasn't the best, but she wasn't the worst. No matter how hard she tried, she could never be as strong as Todoroki, or as smart as Yaoyorozu. She couldn't switch out her Quirk for another. She had to deal with being herself, and she wasn't much to begin with. Still, she'd made her decision, and she wasn't ready to back out. This was the road she chose, and she would reach the end, no matter how thick and muddy it got.

UA was time consuming, so she didn't have much time to focus on her own needs. She was also… well, _not rich,_ so she couldn't waste her money on useless things to entertain herself.

Just after school, she went right back to her tiny apartment. She ignored the commotion coming from the neighbors upstairs and decided to do her homework now so she could rest for the rest of the day. Taking a break after the first twelve questions, she checked her phone.

 **(57) Unread Massages**

Iida had created a chatroom for the class, but most of the students used it as a regular chat group, sending memes and messing around. They talked so much, Ochaco ended up muting the group to save her phone's battery and to not hear the constant dinging. She'd done the same thing to the Girl's Only chatroom. Now, it only dinged if someone tagged her username; which was why she was checking her phone now.

Ashido: _Uravity_

Ashido: _get over here!_

Ochaco folded her legs so that she was more comfortable sitting on the floor. She skipped the number of texts to get to where she was needed.

You: _Yeah?_

Ashido: _the girls want to meet up later next week_

Ashido: _wanna tag along?_

Ochaco thought about it before answering.

You: _not sure_

You: _to where?_

Ashido: _they wanna visit an ice skating ring_

Ashido: _Yaomomo goes there sometimes_

Ashido: _Told us about it_

Ashido: _Sounds fun_

Ashido: _you in?_

Ice skating? She'd never gone ice skating before.

You: _id love to but I don't know how to ice skate_

Ashido: _only Yaomomo does lol_

Ashido: _the rest of us are noobs XD_

Ashido: _gonna be a mess but I wanna have fun_

Jiro: _I asked Kaminari_

Jiro: _he said he might go too_

Ashido: _whyd you ask him?!_

Jiro: _You dragged me into this_

Jiro: _and I don't want to suffer alone_

Jiro: _I wanna see how much of an idiot he is_

Ashido: _lol_

Ashido: _Someone as Kirishima then_

Jiro: _I'll tell Kaminari to ask him_

Hagakure: _I'll ask Ojiro then!_

Ashido: _this turned into a whole class activity lol_

Yaoyorozu: _It would be best to ask the rest of the class then._

Yaoyorozu: _Just to see who else would like to join_

Ashido: _Great!_

Ashido: _wait_

Ashido: _do we need to buy things first?_

Yaoyorozu: _They provide skating shoes. Don't worry about the payment._

Yaoyorozu: _I'll take care of that._

Ashido: _you're the best Yaomomo!_ ❤❤❤

Ochaco smiled at the screen. Just how did she end up with such happy-go-lucky friends?

You: _ok_

You: _I'll go too!_

You: _please don't laugh if I fall ;D_

Ashido: _I doubt youll be the only one tripping there lol_

Ashido: _Our class_

Ashido: _Ice skating_

Ashido: _The world is doomed_

Jiro: _we're gonna die aren't we?_

Hagakure: _;D_

She giggled at their antics. With that done, she went back to whatever was left of her homework. After what felt like hours, she put down her pink pen, stretched her arms above her head before she fell onto her back, staring at an upside-down window.

 _The sky looks nice._ She was a simple girl. She wanted what everyone else wanted: joy. At least, that's what she thought everyone wanted as well. Sighing, she decided a nice walk would do her good.

…

Visiting the flower park had been one of the greatest decisions she'd made today. While she did need to pay for the entrance fee, it was worth it. The smell of grass eased her worries. It was when she heard a familiar voice that she felt her muscles tighten in surprise.

"Big fish, big brother?" That innocent voice…

"Yeah. Koi fish. They get pretty big," the other voice said happily.

Over by one of the many ponds around the park, there he was, the same boy she'd seen at the cat café. He was with that little girl again. They were kneeling by the pond, looking down at the fat fish that had gathered, waiting for food.

He grabbed the little girl's hand and gently handed her pebble-like fish food that he'd probably gotten from those fish food dispensers. She leaned in to drop a few pebbles into the water. He made sure to hold on to her so she wouldn't fall in.

Ochaco inhaled deeply, trying to make herself feel braver. She needed to talk to him properly. While she was flattered that her friends were trying to help her, she was also utterly embarrassed. The poor guy had a random girl ask for his number without a proper explanation, and then Ochaco never actually used the number. No matter how embarrassing the situation was, she needed to explain what really happened.

Standing right behind him, she clasped her hands together. She swallowed down her nervousness and spoke carefully. "Umm… excuse me?"

" _Gah!_ " The boy yelped. Still in a kneeling position, he snapped his head back to see who had snuck up behind him, and slowly felt himself tip backward. In a hopeless attempt to regain his balance, his arms waved frantically by his sides.

Ochaco gasp and quickly grabbed hold of the front of his jacket and yanked. The little child squirmed by his leg worriedly, dropping the pebbles and grabbing his knee, not wanting him to join the Koi fish in the pond.

Thanks to the two girls, he was saved.

He sighed in relief.

"I'm so - I'm so sorry – are you alright?" Ochaco asked, fretting over him.

He rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah... Sorry about that. I'm f-fine. I just got surprised," he chuckled awkwardly.

"I'm sorry! I – I didn't mean to scare you!" Ochaco apologized quickly, her words tumbling over each other.

"It's fine – really!" he insisted frantically. He was on the ground, flat on his butt. She was sitting in front of him with her legs bent beneath her. His eyes slowly widened in realization and he suddenly looked down, blushing. "Oh you're… you're from… from back at the…?"

Ochaco twirled her fingers nervously, nodding. "Sorry I never told you my name. I'm Ochaco Uraraka." _Okay, just keep cool. He looks as uncomfortable as you are._

"O-Oh. Izuku Midoriya. N-Nice to meet you," he forced the words out, his cheeks blushing bright red.

Eri kept looking from him to Ochaco, then to him again, tilting her head in confusion. They all sat there like that for a while…

Well, what a nice why to start.

…

They managed to find a bench to sit on just near another pond. Eri was busy observing the ducks swimming around in the pond as Ochaco tried miserably to let him understand her situation.

"Sorry I freaked you out earlier…" she apologized again, fiddling with the folds of her shirt.

"Hey, it's fine. I should have been paying attention!" He tried to calm her.

Eri sat on the grass, watching with interest as the duck dipped its head underwater.

The two on the bench sat in silence.

"Is she your little sister?" Ochaco asked, feeling like she needed to start the conversation.

He blinked. "My sister?" he asked, looking over at the sight of the younger girl in front of them. "I… guess you can say that. We're not related, but I still see her like a baby sister to me."

Ochaco looked at him curiously.

He realized how vague he answer had sounded. "Ah, I mean… it's… kind of a long story. She's been through a lot, so my mom and I took her in."

"Oh, so you're taking care of her now?" she asked, feeling her nervousness wash away.

"Hmm." He nodded. "We're not sure how long we can keep her, so I want to show her a good time while she's still with us. The… situation's a little complicated right now," he admitted meekly.

"Oh…" She had a feeling the story behind the girl was _way_ more complicated, but she'd just met him, so she didn't feel like it was right to ask for a deeper explanation. "She's really cute."

"Yeah, she gets that a lot." He chuckled.

Okay; so far so good. She was in the right direction. "I saw her back at the café and thought she was adorable, but my friends… well… thought… I… I wasn't looking at _her_ …" Ochaco turned her face down, hoping she wasn't blushing too hard.

"O…Oh…" His eyes widened in realization. He pointed at his chest. "M…Me…? They thought…"

She nodded.

"Is… Was that why... your friend...?"

She nodded again.

"Oh..."

"Yeah…"

Awkward silence. The ducks splashed, chasing each other in the water. A couple passed behind them. Then…

"I…" She refused to look at him, running his fingers through her hair. "Sorry if I… you know… embarrassed you. I put you in a bad spot and…"

"No, no, it's okay!"

"… and I should've talked to you sooner–"

"Uraraka, it – it was just a misunderstanding!"

"–but I didn't know what to say and I got all nervous…"

"I – ah…"

"And I made you wait and I made you think I'd call you when I didn't."

"It's… it's fine, really. It's alright." He tried to laugh it off.

"But… but still!" She gazed at him, determination burning in her eyes. "I still want to be your friend!"

He blinked. "…eh?"

She smiled at him this time. "Can we? Be friends?"

He blinked again, not believing what was going on. "Ahh…" He suddenly snapped out of it and looked away. "…Really?" he seemed too shocked and surprised.

Smiling brightly, she nodded.

It looked like he couldn't believe this was all real. "I mean… s-sure, if… if that's okay with you…"

"Yay!" She cheered, punching the sky. "I'll give you my number."

"Y-Yeah. Sure…" it sounded like he was deep in his own thoughts.

To her delight, turned out Midoriya was easy to get along with. He was a little on the shy side, but was nice and friendly and harmless, she couldn't compare him to anyone in her class. For someone with a bad leg, he liked to walk a lot. At some point, she'd forgotten he needed that foot brace on his right foot. He walked while carrying Eri on his shoulders just fine so she could reach for the dangling flowers as they passed under a Wisteria-Tunnel. It didn't seem like he was in any pain, and aside from his ankle, the rest of his leg moved normally.

"UA?" he gasped.

She laughed weakly, nodding while walking next to him.

"Is…" His eyes brightened. "Is All Might really your teacher, then?"

Eri, who held on to his head, looked down at him in confusion.

"Yeah, Foundational Hero Studies Teacher."

Judging from the _All M_ shirt he wore under that jacket, she guessed he might be a fanboy.

"So _cool!_ " He beamed, his eyes sparkling. Was it possible to see actual stars in someone's eyes? "Is… is it okay if…"

He didn't need to complete that sentence. "You want his autograph?" She giggled when he nodded, the blush returning to his face. "Sure! I'll ask him after class later," she told him happily.

"Thank you so much!"

He was bashful, but noticeably strong-willed. He had an on-and-off button when he talked. He either wouldn't speak, or he'd say super long sentences and stumble over his words. They continued walking slowly through the flower park. At some point, he lifted Eri off his shoulder and put her down, but kept holding her hand as they walked.

"Do you want to sit down somewhere?" She asked him. She hadn't asked about his foot, and she feared the question might make him feel uncomfortable.

"I'm good. Don't worry about this," he gestured to his bad foot. "I run with it sometimes. It's fine," he assured her kindly.

Sure enough, they walked across the curved red bridge without any problems. The large Koi fish swam beneath them. During the whole time, Eri seemed to cling to Izuku. He had tried to introduce her to Ochaco, but she hugged him and pressed her face into his clothes, trying to hide.

Ochaco remembered what he had told her. _'She's been through a lot.'_ She guessed Eri normally behaved that way in front of strangers; however, after Ochaco and Izuku started sharing their interest over Thirteen, Eri didn't seem so frightened anymore.

That was another thing. Izuku looked up to Heroes, and even mentioned how he'd take notes of them and how'd analyze their Quirks and weaknesses. He seemed to open up more as Ochaco talked with him.

"You haven't started school yet?"

He shook his head no. "It's… kind of a long story. Some things happened and… well, we're putting things on hold for now."

As they exited the flower tunnel, they moved to the side to sit on a bench next to a tiny wooden shop that sold packaged seeds and pot storage trays. Izuku heaved the little girl and sat her comfortably on his lap. She leaned back against his chest, seeming content and protected with him.

It accrued to Ochaco that Eri did not behave like most children. She looked to be around five or six, yet, she hadn't spoken a word in front of her. Ochaco had, however, heard the girl say 'fish' before Ochaco had spoken to the boy back near the pond. The way this girl looked around was… unusual? Ochaco couldn't put her finger on it. Eri interacted with things as if she'd never seen them before. She seemed fearful of load noises and strangers, and she had yet to smile. It was as if she didn't know her facial expressions could actually change. She tended to look at hands instead of faces for some reason.

She and her _big brother_ looked too different to be related, and Izuku had admitted he and his mother had taken the girl in. Eri had red eyes and white hair, while Izuku had green eyes and dark green hair. And while they weren't related by blood, the child was awfully clingy to Izuku.

She almost always looked to him for guidance, asking him – ' _Is this safe? Can I do that? Is this okay?'–_ through eye contact alone. If she felt too scared to do something, such as touch a cat, she'd back away, but if big brother Izuku stepped in, then she'd copy him, because, to a child like Eri, big brother Izuku knew more than her.

Izuku was obviously doing his best to get her to peek out of her shell. He gently encouraged her to interact with the world around her: cats, fish, flowers, etc. He'd explain things that fascinated her so she could get a better understanding of them. And that was another thing Ochaco had noticed. The little girl didn't understand most things around her.

"Thanks for hanging out with us today," Izuku told Ochaco. "I want Eri to get used to people, but we moved apartments a few times and after my surgeries and whatnot, I never got to… you know… plan things out better, so…"

Ochaco smiled. "I'm glad I tagged along then! It was so much fun. Maybe we can do this again sometime?"

He looked at her in astonishment, and then gave her a bright smile. "I… thank you. I'd like that. Eri, would you like to see Uraraka again sometime?"

Eri looked up at him, then at her, before she gave a tiny, shy nod.

That was enough to widen Izuku's smile. It seemed like he was proud of her answer.

"Great!" Ochaco beamed and extended her hand, holding it in front of the little girl. "I'll see you again soon, okay, Eri?"

Eri gazed at her, thinking. She then gave her a nod and reach out with her tiny hand to hold Ochaco's.

Ochaco had to admit; she was happy.

When she'd decided to visit the cat café, she hadn't planned to leave with a phone number.

When she'd decided to visit the flower park, she hadn't planned on making friends.

When she'd talked to Izuku that day, she hadn't planned to be part of a child's rehabilitation.

She was glad. For everything.

Walking away from the park, she flipped open her phone and added the new contact to the list.

 **TBC**

* * *

 _Notes:_

 _-This is just a glimpse of what I'm working on. I'm not done with it just yet, and while I don't usually post multi-chapter stories, this ended up being too long for a one-shot. Readers informed me that my other story,_ _'Try To Live, With Me, For You, And For Me'_ _was a little too long. I've already pushed past the 5,000 words mark here, and I'm not even halfway into the story yet, so I decided to split it up into chapters._

 _-I was planning on posting this after I finished writing all - or at least - most of the chapters, but I haven't posted something in a while, and I still have a lot to work on. Here's the first chapter, just to let you know I'm still writing._

 _-I'm not going to update until a finish at least a few more chapters. I used to post stories regularly, but I just started university again, so things might slow down a little, but I do still write in the morning and before bed._

 _-After I found out there was a cat café in my country, decided to take a look. I'm not sure how cat cafés work in other countries, but I'm sure there are a few differences with how each one works. The stamp card is something that's regularly used at the pet groomers I sometimes take my pets to. I thought I might add it in just for fun._

 _-The payment for the cat café depends on how long you wish to stay. And yeah you can still order drinks normally._

 _-And yeah, Eri is in this story, because, well, why the fuck not? I know, I know, I basically butchered the timelines and all that jazz, but hey, when has my brain ever cooperated with me? It does what it does, and trying to reason with it will get me nowhere, so I just went with the flow._

 _-I felt like the story was all over the place. But, hey, it's the best I can come up with while feeling like the outside world is ready to eat me. I don't know if it shows, but I wrote this while I wasn't feeling too well. I had to play some sort of white noise in the background to motivate myself to keep writing. If I don't write, I feel worse. I feel like going mad if it's too quiet._


	2. Chapter 2: The Rays

**Where Golden Flowers Bloom**

 **Chapter 2: The Rays**

 **SevenRenny**

He'd found her half-asleep on the sofa in front of the TV with a blanket over her lap. He chuckled lightly as Eri struggled to keep her head up. She blinked up at him tiredly and yawned.

"You must be tired." He quietly moved her blanket aside and knelt to her level. Recognizing the gesture, she wrapped her arms around his neck and he gladly picked her up. It seemed like she was ready to sleep with her head on his shoulder.

His mother, Inko, smiled gently as her son took the girl back to her bedroom. The chubby woman turned off the television and grabbed the blanket to fold it. The small apartment had two bedrooms, and because they weren't sure for how long they'd be staying, they decided to settle here, for now.

Eri and Izuku shared a bedroom, because the child was too scared to be without him. She'd slept in Inko's bed a few times, but she seemed more at ease with her big brother. Inko wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because he was younger and Eri felt uncomfortable around adults, or maybe it was because Izuku had been the one to hold on to her when they'd met.

He let her have the bed while he slept on a futon on the floor. Tucking her in and giving her a kiss on the head, she sighed and sank her cheek into the pillow. Izuku went over to the cat-shaped LED night light and gave it a press between the ears. It lit up, slowly changing color from blue to purple to red. It took Izuku and Inko a few nights to realize Eri didn't like the dark, or being alone, or having the doors closed. That was why Izuku kept the bedroom door half-open.

Thanks to the nightlight, even after he'd turned off the bedroom lights, everything was still visible. He grabbed his phone and set the timer to wake him up tomorrow morning. The phone dinged in his hand.

 **(8) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _Hi Midoriya_

Uraraka: _sorry im texting you this late_

Uraraka: _youre probably asleep right now_

Uarakara: _you can read this in the morning_

Uraraka: _just wanted to say_

Uraraka: _I had fun today_

Uraraka: _see you and Eri again soon_

Uraraka: _Goodnight!_

The light from the phone reflected off his face as he read the first few texts he'd ever received from a friend. Friend… what a weird, vague word it was. It was supposed to be simple to understand, so how had he gotten it so wrong? Friend: a person one would enjoy spending time with. Was that all it was?

As a child, he used to enjoy spending time with Kacchan and his buddies. _That's my friend,_ he had thought back then. But he learned friends came with a package full of bruises, burn marks, scraped knees and a curse that marked him as _'lonely'_ for the rest of his life.

He had tried to look for better people, but to everyone, he was simply a pest; either run away from it, or hit it. So, he had tried to stay out of everyone's way, but no matter how quiet he was, he just couldn't turn invisible. In the end, he did the only thing he could do. He gave up. Yes, he longed for affection and loving human contact, but he had accepted it wasn't possible for people like him.

He reread the girl's texts. She had made the decision to talk to him, and had offered to be his friend. She had smiled, and laughed with him, and not _at_ him. No stranger had been this friendly to him in a long time. He wanted her. He truly wanted to talk to her again, because that fuzzy feeling in his belly was something new to him. Was that what it felt like to have friend?

She was friendly and easy to talk with, and Eri had opened up to her faster than Izuku thought was possible. She'd usually hide behind him, but at some point, she held Uraraka's hand. Was it because that girl was closer to his age? Eri had never interacted with other teenagers, and most people who had tried to get close to her were adults and elders.

While it was nice to know that Eri trusted him, he didn't want her to cling to him forever. At some point, they would have to separate. If he wanted her to grow up like most children, than he had to teach her how, and who, to trust, and how to make friends – something he never got to learn. He couldn't do it alone. If Eri could open up to more people, than she could figure out how to make friends. He had failed, but she still had a chance.

Open up – to one person at a time, starting here.

He typed and sent Uraraka his reply before putting his phone down.

 **To Uraraka:**

You: _I had fun too_

You: _Goodnight_

He plopped down over his futon and messed with the straps of his foot brace. He heard Eri yawn as he slid the brace off and grabbed his blanket. Eri's eyes were half-closed, slowly blinking shut.

"Wake me up if you need to use the bathroom, kay?" he whispered, not wanting to disturb her.

"Hmm," was all she could manage before her eyes closed completely.

Satisfied, he finally relaxed his body, sighing. She depended on him a lot, and needed him nearby, but he knew she was a strong girl. She'd eventually get strong enough to not need him anymore. But right now, he didn't mind having her stuck to him like glue.

No one had been there to help him when he was younger. She was a child, but he was there for her. He'd make sure she got the help she needed. He didn't care if he ran himself down; as long as she came out of it alright, then so be it. He'd help.

One step at a time.

…

"Are. You. Serious?" Mina hissed. She wanted to face palm, but she needed to keep Ochaco's feet pinned to the floor as the brown-haired girl continued to do sit-ups.

Mina waited for Ochaco to pull up so she could whisper to her without getting in trouble for messing around during gym class. "Did you seriously friend-zone him on a date?"

"It's… It's not…" Ochaco fell back, huffed, then sat up. "It wasn't a… a date…" She fell back again.

"Suuure. You and him, at the park, and you want me to believe it wasn't a date."

"With his…" She sat up. "With his little sister!" She hissed, sweat collecting over her head. "It wasn't a – a date."

"So when _are you_ gonna go on a date?"

Aizawa blew the whistle and the working students huffed, falling back to catch their breaths. Ochaco's cheeks were flushed more than usual, and Mina hoped it was because of the question she'd asked, and not because of the work they were doing.

"It's… It's not like that…"

"Why _not_?" Mina pouted. "Just cause he's stuck babysitting doesn't mean he can't find the time for a quick date."

"I…" Ochaco sighed. "I really appreciate what you're doing, but… he's just a friend…"

Another whistle ringed and the partnered students switched places. Because of the odd number of the class, some managed to do it alone, or waited for another student to finish so they could help them out.

Ochaco breathed heavily as she relaxed on the floor. Midoriya was just a friend. She'd known him for one day. He was a good big brother, from what she'd seen, and while she didn't know much about their lives, Midoriya had dropped hints here and there indicating that the situation was a lot more complicated. He'd said things such as _'She's been through a lot'_ and _'We're not sure how long we can keep her'_ and _'I want Eri to get used to people'_. The child – Eri – seemed to be scared of new things, and the way she scanned her surroundings was… slightly unnatural. It was as if she'd never seen other human beings before.

She jolted when Mina slapped her thigh playfully. "Switch," the pink girl reminded.

"Eh?"

"Switcheroo." Mina drew circles in the air.

"…Oh." With some difficulty, Ochaco rolled off the mat and Mina plopped down. She pinned Mina's feet and the other girl began doing sit-ups.

' _We're not sure how long we can keep her, so I want to show her a good time while she's still with us'_ he had told her. Something about that unsettled her. Something within her told her Eri and Izuku needed help, urgently. Izuku was a kind person, but yesterday, while sitting beside him, it looked like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He was in trouble somehow.

' _I want to show her a good time…'_

…Okay. She could do that.

Right after classes ended, she immediately went to visit one of her teachers. All Might always vanished, and she had a feeling she wouldn't find him today. Before she could knock on the door, she heard someone choke on a wet cough.

" _You seem to be getting worse."_ Was that the principle?

" _Yeah…"_ All Might sounded… tired. Down.

" _Have you made a decision yet?"_

" _I'm…"_ All Might sighed. _"There's a candidate… however…"_

" _You're not so certain."_ The principle finished for him.

Ochaco didn't know if it was okay to keep listening just outside All Might's office.

" _I'd… like to keep looking, is what I'm trying to say. The candidate has potential, but I would like to see what the students here have."_

" _I see. Take as long as you deem necessary. I'm sure you'll find what you are looking for. Just be sure to watch out for your health."_

" _Thank you."_

Ochaco swallowed thickly. Getting worse? Health? Was… was All Might sick? And candidate? For what?

Ochaco yelped when the door slid open on its own.

"Oh, hello," the short animal greeted.

Ochaco looked down, spotting the white-furred principle. "Here to see All Might, I presume?" he asked.

"O – Oh… I… I – I could come back later, I mean…" Ochaco pointed to the hallway nervously.

A booming voice thundered from inside the office. "Come in, come in, young student!"

The principle took a quick peek inside the room, then turned to her, stepping aside to leave with his paws behind his back. "Well, I best be off."

Ochaco fearfully peeked in and saw her teacher, All Might, all buff and smiling widely.

"Umm… All Might, sir?"

"Don't be shy! Please, have a seat, young lady!" He gestured to a chair with his thick arm.

"I… It's not a bad time, is it?" She fiddled with her hair.

"Nonsense! I will always have time for my students."

She didn't believe him, but Ochaco still sat down, slipping off her pink backpack and dropping it near her feet. On his desk, she saw a tiny, hand-sized book with ' _Teaching 101'_ as the title. All Might shoved the book into a drawer and Ochaco swore she saw him sweat drop.

He coughed into his hand awkwardly. "So, err… what can I help you with? I will gladly answer your questions as best as I can!"

"Actually…" smiling sheepishly, Ochaco unzipped her bag and brought out one of her notebooks. "My… friend wants your autograph, if that's okay?" She asked as sweetly as she could manage under pressure.

All Might seemed to perk up at that. "Of course, of course!" He didn't seem to mind at all. Then again, he'd probably been signing for fans for years. He took the notebook and signed the inside.

"Thank you so much, All Might!" She accepted it gratefully.

"No worries. Now, is there anything else I can do for you?" His huge grin never faded.

She slipped the notebook into her bag and lifted it up to her shoulders. "Well…" she hesitated, messing with the straps of her backpack. "Just a question..." She thought back to that boy from yesterday. He had smiled and seemed so happy, but there had been a strange aura surrounding him. "It's… not about class though…" That little girl clung to her big brother. It was as if he were the only kind person in this world to her. She didn't need a Hero as long as she had her own Hero right there.

"Ask away!"

"Umm…" To Eri, her big brother was her Hero. "All Might, can…" However– "Can Heroes ask for help?" –Heroes were human as well.

All Might was quiet, clearly not expecting such a question. "Yes," his voice wavered slightly. "Even Heroes need Heroes."

…

In an attempt to keep Eri's attention, Izuku continued to read to her _'On the Seesaw Bridge'_ , because now, her focus was on the pictures in the book, and Izuku didn't want her to hear Inko talking worriedly on the phone just outside their bedroom.

Since they had found Eri, the authorities had yet to find any identification or any sort of information. Aside from Izuku and his mother, Eri hadn't spoken to anyone else. During interviews to gain more information from her, Izuku had to be in the same room as her, and he had to figure out ways to keep her attentions on him and forget about the adult taking tones. However, he couldn't get much out of her. Some topics scared her into panic attacks, and it was as if her mind was blocking away bad memories by shutting down on her like that.

Every few days, the police would inform Inko of any progress. Because Eri was in their care, they deemed it was best to let them know. Would Eri stay with them? They didn't know. Where her parents alive? Why hadn't they informed the police? Eri had been in poor condition and in great distress when Izuku had found her, so if her parents had been responsible, then things would get even more complicated.

After a few calls, Eri had heard Inko whisper her name over the phone, and from then, the child knew these calls had something to do with her. That scared her, so Izuku would try to keep her entertained while his mother handled the call like always.

So, he read to her.

They sat on the bed with the blanket covering their legs. She pressed against his side to have a look at the pages. It was about a fox and a hare stuck on a seesaw bridge, and they had to work together to figure out how to get off and not fall into the river below. He had read this to her before, but she had a habit of picking the same books so he could read to her again. He'd occasionally teach her words she didn't understand and taught her how to pronounce things correctly.

There was a knock on the door before Inko peeked in, seeing the two huddled on the bed. "Oh, are you two reading that again?" Inko already knew the answer, but it felt nice to talk to them.

Eri gave a shy nod. Izuku just smiled at his mother.

"Eri, honey, do you want a snack? Wait on the couch, okay, sweetie?" Inko coxed sweetly.

Eri carefully climbed over Izuku's legs and he helped her slide off the bed. Inko lovingly brushed Eri's head as the little girl passed her. Izuku knelt to wrap his foot support back in place. He knew how to walk without the brace, but he often found it annoying when he couldn't actually use his ankle, and his foot would drop down and his toes would brush the floor with every step.

Inko walked in and left the door only slightly open so that Eri wouldn't think she'd been locked out.

"What did they say?" Izuku asked in a low voice, still focusing on his foot.

Inko sat down on the bed. "Nothing yet." She held her hands together. "They're… They said they're going to widen the search." The authorities had gathered missing case files but had failed to find one that matched Eri, then they decided to look into the closest matches to see if Eri had somehow – due to a Quirk or other reasons – had changed in appearance; still, no luck. They were still searching through files to find more info, but Eri wasn't their only missing person case, and they had more files and people to find, which slowed things down. Izuku and Inko had no idea how to feel about it. Where did Eri come from? Were her parents good or abusive? Were they even alive to begin with? Who had scarred her arms and legs? Who had scarred her mind and heart so she couldn't be a normal, healthy child?

"Mom…" Izuku noticed how sad his mother looked.

"Whatever they find, I just hope she'll be happy," she said quietly. When Izuku dropped his foot to the floor, Inko drew him into a gentle hug, which he melted into. "You're being a good big brother to her, Izuku. I'm so proud of you, honey."

While she was supposed to be Eri's mother for now, it felt like Izuku was the one doing most of the work. He would read hero stories, teach her how to read and write, take her to see nice places, introduce her to new things, hold her hand and calm her down from a panic attack, hold her whenever she woke up from nightmares, stay with her until she slept, look for activities she might like, and Eri pretty much clung to him.

Izuku leaned into his mother's hug, but perked up when he saw the little girl peeking by the door, waiting for him.

"Oh – I'll be right there, Eri."

Inko gave him a kiss on the head before getting up and heading for the kitchen. Izuku pushed himself up, but froze when his phone dinged.

 **(3) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _Hi Midoriya_

Uraraka: _just got back from school_

Uraraka: _how's Eri?_

He hadn't expected her to talk to him so soon. He'd figured she'd contact him on rare occasions, not a day right after they'd met. He felt happy, though, knowing there were people like her out there. The years hadn't been too kind to him, and he'd ended up with too many mean people being chucked at him from every side.

This was a nice person.

He wasn't sure why she'd decided to talk to him, but he was still happy.

 **To Uraraka:**

You: _she's ok_

You: _moms getting her food_

You: _im planning to take her some place nice later_

Should he ask if she wanted to join? Would that be appropriate? What if she thought he was annoying?

 **(2) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _awww that's so sweeeet X3_

Uraraka: _where are you going?_

 **To Uraraka:**

You: _not sure yet_

 **(4) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _oh_

Uraraka: _wait how about this_

Uraraka: _has she been here before?_

She sent him a link, which led him to a website. Oh… he hadn't thought of that.

 **To Uraraka:**

You: _no_

You: _but I think it's a great idea_

You: _ill ask my mom and let her know_

You: _Thanks!_

 **(2) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _yes!_

Uraraka: _can I join you two_

Izuku paused. He hadn't expected her to want to be near him again. Usually, his _friends_ never liked him around. He had to keep reminding himself Uraraka was different. It was hard to get Eri to come out of her protective shell when a stranger was nearby, but she'd managed to not be too afraid of Uraraka.

 **To Uraraka:**

You: _sure_

 **(1) Unread Messages:**

Uraraka: _yay!_

She was a nice person. She was a student at UA, and probably had other friends to hang out with, but she decided to spend her time with him and Eri for some reason.

He got out of his room and walked Eri to the couch, because she wouldn't go without him.

"Eri, remember that nice girl from yesterday?" he asked her, lowering his head so he was eye level with her.

She tilted her head, thinking, and then pointed to her cheeks questioningly.

Izuku chuckled and placed his hand over her head affectionately. "Yeah – the girl with pink cheeks. Remember her?"

She gave one node, gazing at him curiously.

"She told me about this pretty place. Do you want to see it with me?"

Eri's eyes widened. Whenever he took her to _places_ , they were almost always wonderful.

"She wants to see you like before; is that okay with you, Eri?"

She trusted Izuku, and if Izuku trusted the girl with pink cheeks, then Eri can trust her, too!

She nodded again, which caused him to smile sweetly at her.

…

They had kept in contact throughout the day. Ochaco was already tired from today's lesson at UA, but she couldn't waste time sitting round doing nothing. That boy – Midoriya – was doing his best to make that little girl happy. If she could just help him with this, then she could relax knowing she's spent the day making someone happy.

She got off the bus and made her way to the blue building. Her pink jacket almost completely covered the black shirt underneath. There weren't many people around, or maybe it only looked like that because the area was spacious. It didn't take long to find Izuku and Eri waiting just outside the building. He had his hands pressed to his knees, leaning down so Eri could see his gentle smile as he spoke to her. Eri was holding on to his sleeve, but she didn't seem on guard. It could be because there weren't many people around her.

"Midoriya! Eri!" she called to them happily, waving her hand so they could spot her skipping her way over to them. Eri was in a bright blue dress. _'Little Hero'_ was written in sparkly pink words on her shirt, and an oversized black bow held her white hair together in a ponytail.

Izuku straightened and held up his hand, signaling to Ochaco that he'd seen her.

She stopped in front of them. "Sorry I kept you two waiting," she said sheepishly.

Izuku waved her off, smiling. "It's fine. We just got here early." Better be early than late, as his mother would tell him.

Ochaco noticed how Eri was watching her curiously. "Ready to go, Eri?" Ochaco asked sweetly, extending her hand – the same hand she'd offered back at the flower park. Eri hesitated, looking up at Izuku for guidance. He gave her an encouraging smile and grabbed her hand, assuring her that this person wouldn't just snatch her and run.

She delicately reached out to hold two of Ochaco's fingers. It wasn't an actually hold, really, but Ochaco beamed at her anyway.

"Let's go then!" Ochaco cheered excitedly, punching the sky in a playful manner.

Pushed through the rotating glass doors, they had to go and fetch tickets before they were allowed to go further in. The aquarium was spacious, but there weren't too many people, maybe due to another event taking place nearby, collecting the people over there instead.

They entered a dim tunnel, their footsteps echoing. Eri latch onto Izuku, and he gladly picked her up.

"It's fine, Eri. Look," he said, smiling and nodding to the glass wall they were approaching. Eri's eyes widened when she saw the school of black and yellow fish, swimming in a triangular pattern. The slight fear in Eri's eyes disappeared, being replaced by sheer amazement and awe.

Izuku chuckled lightly at how fast she'd switched. Ochaco couldn't help but smile. Soft music played in the background. There were plates with provided information about the fish included in the tanks.

The circular tanks held jellyfish. The lights in the tank kept changing, and the jellyfish kept reflecting red, green, and purple colors. Their thin tentacles drew lines behind them as they swam, their bodies thrumming, pushing them forward.

"So _cool!_ " Ochaco said, and she missed how Eri did a tiny nod as Izuku held her up so she could see well.

Next was the seahorse tank. Eri took some searching to find what was in the tank, until one seahorse detached its curled tail from a plant. Those yellow plants were actually a bunch of seahorses hanging on to thinner plants by their tails.

When they got to a larger tank filled with a variety of blue, black and orange fish, Eri spotted a kind she recognized and pointed at it in amazement. "Nemo!"

Ochaco found that adorable and tried her best not to giggle. Sure enough, the clownfish squeezed into sea anemones, occasionally peeking out of the pink tentacles and slipping back in. there were also black and white clownfish, and tiny, rocket shaped fish with blue bodies with red lines.

Those didn't matter, because Eri was still fixated on the clownfish. "Nemo, Izuku!" She smiled brightly, pointing at the glass with a chubby finger. She seemed to forget Ochaco was there.

Izuku chuckled. "Yeah, you found him, Eri." He hiked her up, adjusting her so that she sat more comfortably on his arm. Each tank was decorated with corals and rocks and hiding spots for the fish.

The underwater aquarium tunnel was almost magical. The light from above them waved like liquid, obscured by water movement. They could see fish swimming left, right, and above them. Eri didn't know _where_ to look, and kept craning her neck to look everywhere.

"Look, up there!" Ochaco waved excitedly, pointing at a large fish slowly swimming there way. "It's sooo big!" While the trip had been specifically for Eri, Ochaco felt like a small child again as the gentle giant swam over them with tiny fish clinging to its sides.

" _Wow!_ " Eri's mouth hung wide open, too distracted to realize that.

"That's a whale shark, Eri. Pretty cool, huh?"

Most of the animals were ones Eri had never seen before, but as she saw the giant turtle flapping its flippers to come up for air, she knew what that was. "Big turtle!" At some point, Izuku had placed her down, and she actually went up to the glass to get a closer look at the giant stingrays resting over the sand.

Ochaco knelt next to her to have a look as well. One of the stingrays curled its sides and flapped them like wings. A cloud of sand puffed and the stingray swam up against the glass wall. The three of them looked up in wonder as it passed above them.

During the River Section, Ochaco noticed how Izuku's eyes seemed to shin with happiness. Eri kept looking back to check if they were still following, but the little girl was a few tiny steps ahead of them.

Ochaco leaned to the side, closer to him, as she walked with her hands behind her back. "You look happy," she commented with a smile.

He was started at first, but then looked back at Eri as she examined the river fish in one of the longer tanks. The water in the tanks here kept moving with the help of water pumps, simulating the current of a river so the fish could swim against the flow. "Yeah. It's just… I've never seen Eri so excited about something. She's always too nervous to go far." He was proud. Eri was getting braver, her childish curiosity overcoming her fear.

A female worker greeted them when they reached the ray touch pool area. With the worker nearby, Eri returned to Izuku's side, grabbing his hand. It turned out the friendly worker was there to instruct them how to touch the rays and introduce them to a few kinds. Izuku helped Eri to stand on a higher step close to the tank so she could reach in. The pool was filled with tiny baby stingrays, all ranging from dull brown colors, to brightly spotted ones.

"Just gently brush them using two fingers," the worker kindly instructed, reaching into the water and touching a ray with the tips of her fingers. "Try to avoid the eyes and tails."

"We can touch them?" Ochaco said in surprise. Those rays were still babies, just bigger than her hand. They were nothing like the huge grown ones they'd seen in the tunnels. Eri hesitated and looked up at Izuku. Knowing she wouldn't try unless he did, he rolled up his sleeve and dipped his hand in, slowly reaching for a leopard spotted ray. Used to human touch by now, the ray didn't seem bothered by the feather-like touch.

Seeing this, Ochaco felt like it was her duty to also have a try. You only live once, after all. Swallowing down her nervousness, Ochaco stuck her hand into the water and, with the tips of her fingers, brushed the back of a black stingray with white spots. The animal continued gliding slowly across the sand. It felt slimy; like touching wet rubber.

Eri looked between Ochaco and Izuku. They both touched the creatures, which meant it was safe for her to do so, too. She grabbed the side of the rock-edged pool with one hand and carefully dipped her other hand in. Izuku placed his free hand over her back, making sure she wouldn't fall in.

She petted the one Izuku had touched, and smiled in amazement. The ray was as calm as ever.

"Small," Eri whispered, her eyes focusing on the ray.

"yeah, it's a baby," Izuku informed her.

"Baby?" Eri repeated. "Will it get big?"

"Hmm." He nodded.

"So cute!" Ochaco cooed as some of the rays climbed over each other.

After washing and drying their hands, they went on to see a rounded tank housing a pink octopus. It was the size of a house cat. Two of its arms were touching the glass, showing off the many suctions it used to hold on to things. A TV screen in the room showed the octopus in action, grabbing fish, squeezing into empty glass bottles, and clouding the water in black smoke by farting ink.

When they got to the areas holding other animals, Eri was once again brave enough to let go of Izuku's hand to see the seals clowning around, batting at a colorful toy in the water.

As they went on, she got more vocal. "Penguins, big brother!" Eri said proudly, a bright smile and a tiny blush on her face as the penguins on the other side of the glass floated at the water's surface on their bellies like a boat. It didn't take long for her to skip a few steps ahead of them to see the otters. The two teens glanced at each other and giggled at how excited the little girl was.

The visit was almost over, but there was one last thing they had to do.

"Look," Ochaco said, pointing at the sign that read _Underwater Dining._

"Oh, are you hungry, Eri?" Izuku asked her.

She thought about it, and then gave him a tiny nod.

"Guess we'll eat here, then." He turned to Ochaco. "Is that fine with you, Uraraka?"

"Oh, I… umm… I don't think I brought enough money to eat out…" she admitted embarrassingly.

"It's alright. I'll pay." Izuku offered kindly.

"Oh! You don't have to – it's okay!"

"It's fine." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm glad you told me about this place. Let me pay. I haven't had this much fun in a while, and I haven't seen Eri smile this much before," he said honestly. "So let me thank you." That bright smile made her heart skip.

…

After taking the escalator to go down, they found out the restaurant was located in the middle of a giant, curved fish tank. It reminded them of the tunnel they'd see earlier. The glass curved over them like a cave, giving them a 180° view of the underwater world. Sharks passed over them and schools of fish swirled like tornadoes.

They chose the family meal so all three could dig in.

While Eri dipped her cheese sticks in ketchup, Izuku took advantage of the peaceful atmosphere.

"I… umm…" He searched for the proper words. "Thanks for today, Uraraka." He blushed, looking down at his plate. "It was fun. Really."

She waved her hands in front of her, blushing as well. "You don't need to thank me. I didn't do anything!"

He shook his head no. "You… made us really happy today. Thanks…" he said sincerely. Seeing that Eri was still distracted by food, he kept going in a lower voice. "Eri… I found her a few months ago. She ran into me when mom and I were going to visit a doctor to get my leg checked…" he gazed down sadly. "She was really hurt and scared… She kept crying and wouldn't let me go. No one came to get her, and I couldn't just leave her. We didn't know if she was lost or if she'd runaway. The police said she might've been abused..."

Ochaco's eyes widened. She glanced at the little girl taking a sip from a straw. This child… Ochaco had seen her smile and pet cats and hug Izuku and do those simple things children loved to do. She couldn't imagine anyone hurting this sweetheart.

"She's too scared to talk about what happened to her, so the investigators don't have much to go on… Things… things are getting more complicated, and we're still not sure what's going to happen to her," Izuku continued, making sure to keep his voice low. "But… but I want her to be happy. She's staying with us now, but there's… there's a chance she might get taken away." He sighed sadly, gripping his hands together. "She's only with us because she refused to eat unless I was there with her. Mom and I had to go through interviews and history checks before we were allowed to keep her. And… and it's only temporary." He looked troubled, worry slowly shining through his green eyes. "So… thank you… for making her smile today."

Ochaco wanted to hug them both. She wanted to hug them and let them know just how much she cared. "Midoriya…" She extended a hand, but paused before she could touch his shoulder. Was this appropriate? Was this okay? What should she do? What _could_ she do?

"Let's do this again sometime," she said loudly so Eri also heard her.

"Huh?" Izuku seemed surprised.

"Yeah! We could hang out more!" Ochaco said happily, her fists tightening in determination. "The three of us!" She turned to Eri and clapped her hands together. "Would you like that, Eri?"

Eri's eyes widened and she looked over at Izuku for confirmation. The look of surprise on his face melted away and he smiled gently at her. "What do you think, Eri?"

She nodded. Ochaco lifted her fist to the sky. "It's settled. I'll call you whenever I have free time, then!" She was already listing the things they could do, and Izuku just stared at her, admiring her positive energy.

She was a nice person.

At the end of the day, before they could part ways, they stopped to say their goodbyes.

"Oh, here–" Ochaco reach into her small bag and pulled out a notebook. Izuku tilted his head questioningly. She opened the notebook, showing All Might's signature.

Izuku's expression was hilarious. "That… th- that's – Al-All Might… I… He… I…" He kept speaking in gibberish, his words tumbling over each other. Eri looked at him in confusion.

Ochaco giggled, closing the notebook and handing it to him. He bowed in gratitude a couple of times, which only made Ochaco sweat drop at how exaggerated his movements were.

"Th – Thank you s-so much!" he stuttered.

"It's nothing." With a bright smile, Ochaco knelt to Eri's level and extended her hand. "Let's meet again soon, okay?"

Eri looked her in the eyes, then, just like before, she grabbed two of Ochaco's fingers and nodded.

Ochaco promised she'd make this girl smile over and over again. Izuku wasn't a UA student like Ochaco. He wasn't battling Villains or putting out fires. He was just looking after a child, and yet, he already seemed like a bigger Hero than those featured on the news. He didn't want money. He didn't want fame. He didn't want glory. He just wanted Eri to be happy.

And Ochaco admired that.

 **TBC**

* * *

 _Notes:_

 _-Kind of a slow start, but I don't want to rush things._

 _-"On the Seesaw Bridge" is an actual book by Yuichi Kimura, Kowshiro Hata (Illustrator)._

 _-Where I live, there's only one tiny aquarium in the whole country, and it only holds a few fish and some wildlife. I lookedup photos and videos of aquariums from other countries (Georgia Aquarium, Shanghai Ocean Aquarium, uShaka Marine World, Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium, Dubai Mall Aquarium) so I could get a feel of what other aquariums hold._

 _-As a kid, I used to call the clownfish 'Nemo' fish, because I only associated that fish with the one from the movie. Later, I went to see some fish with my niece, and she pointed at the clownfish and called it Nemo as well._

 _-The underwater dining scene was inspired by pictures of the Ithaa Undersea Restaurant._

 _-And just a reminder: updates will still be slow._


	3. Chapter 3: Bird People

**Where Golden Flowers Bloom**

 **Chapter 3: Bird People**

 **SevenRenny**

" _Do you hear me, Midoriya?"_

" _Ye… Yeah... Doctor? Where…"_

" _It's alright, Midoriya. I promise. Now, tell me, what do you see? Describe it to me."_

" _It's… dark. I see stars. It's like… I'm out in space but… I'm… standing on water? Where – where am I, Doctor?"_

" _Your own world, Midoriya – A world only you can see."_

" _But… why… why am I here?"_

" _This is your sanctuary, Midoriya. Tell me, now. Tell me everything, as best as you can. What do you see?"_

" _It's all black, but there are… there are stars everywhere… The floor's water and… Oh… wait, there are… flowers? I think?"_

" _Very good, Midoriya. Keep going. Can you describe them to me? What do they look like? How many?"_

" _There are two._ _They're on lily pads on the water…"_

" _Two?"_

" _Y-Yeah…"_

" _Only two?"_

"… _I think so. One is bright yellow, but… the other one looks like it's dying."_

"… _Alright, Midoriya. You're doing very well. Do you want to stop here, or will it be alright if I ask you a few questions?"_

" _Hmm. I think… I think I can keep going."_

" _Okay. If you want to end the session, let me know. You can pass if you don't want to answer the questions."_

"… _Okay."_

" _Okay. Do you love people, Midoriya?"_

" _People?"_

" _Anyone that comes to your mind?"_

"… _My mom."_

" _Your mother. Alright. Anyone else? Your father? Friends?"_

" _I… no. I haven't seen Dad since I was little. Friends… I used to have Kacchan… but… he hates me now…"_

" _Why is that?"_

" _Because… I'm Quirkless."_

" _I see. And do you, perhaps, think this friendship had died years ago, or had it been recent?"_

" _I… never thought about it, really. He was mean to me even back then, but… I never… I never really thought about it…"_

" _Is your relationship with your mother still strong?"_

" _Mom? Yeah."_

" _Alright then. Midoriya, aside from this Kacchan, do you have other friends?"_

" _I… don't – I don't… know... I…"_

" _You're not sure who's a friend, and who is not?"_

" _I… I mean, what… what counts as a friend?"_

…

Izuku remembered his own visit to places like this very well, so as he sat with Eri and his mother in the childish waiting room, he couldn't help but get tangled up in old memories. The clock _tick-tick-ticked_ and the television in the room played a children's show. Eri kept playing with the button of her shirt and swinging her legs back and forth as she sat, waiting for the lady at the desk to call her name.

Izuku couldn't blame her for feeling uneasy. This wasn't her first visit here, and she was expected to come over and over again. Colorful turtles were painted on the walls and there were children's drawings pinned to a board. Those happy things didn't seem to make Eri feel better.

Eri flinched when the woman at the desk called both her and Izuku.

Izuku straightened and offered her his hand. "Come on, Eri," he said sweetly.

"I'll be right here if you need me," Inko informed them, giving Eri an encouraging hug.

Eri trailed behind Izuku. She didn't know why she had to keep coming here. Dr. Haru was a friendly, smiley person, but she was also an adult. Logically, she knew this person wouldn't do her any harm, but her instincts told her otherwise.

"Hi, Eri!" The older woman greeted. She had wrinkles beneath her eyes and a calming voice rolled out her throat. She greeted the little girl who clung to Izuku's sleeve, then the woman greeted Izuku himself.

"Is your mother here?" She asked him kindly.

"Yeah. She's just outside." When interacting with the familiar lady, Izuku made sure to sound as calm as possible, because he knew Eri paid attention. She was a clever one. She tended to pick up on tiny details around her: people's facial expressions, hand movements, what belonged to whom, what was forbidden and what was not; changes in patterns and whatnot. She also tended to focus on how big brother Izuku felt about someone. If Izuku loved Mama Inko, then so would Eri; if Izuku could trust Ochaco, then so could Eri; if Uzuku listened to the doctor, then so should Eri.

"How about you fill this out while I talk to her in another room?" The kind doctor asked, handing Izuku a paper and a pen. "Is that okay?"

"Sure," Izuku nodded and guided Eri into the room. It looked like a place at a kindergarten; with short-legged tables, colorful beanbags, coloring books and painting stands, small plastic barrels of playdough, a drawing board, thin kids' books, a few pillows, and a rainbow carpet on the floor.

"Take as long as you need," the doctor informed them with a kind smile. She bent slightly to look down at Eri. "Stay with your big brother, okay, sweetie?"

Eri looked down uncertainly and nodded, grabbing Izuku's hand tighter. The lady gently placed her thin hand on Eri's head before heading out. They sat by the short table so Izuku could read to her what was on the paper.

 _Think about how you've felt over the past month, then please fill out the below form_ – it read. They had done this before, but they were required to do it again to see if Eri had any mood changes. And Izuku was sure Haru was talking with his mother, gathering any information about their behavior from Inko. Yes, Haru was Eri's doctor, but also his. He'd gone to her more than once, and he trusted her, because she genuinely wanted to help. Her patients were mostly children, but she also handled teenagers often. He had first been interviewed by her in a room that looked more like a simple living room. He didn't mind the room switch, though. At least there were things he could use to keep Eri's attention, like those crayons, or some playdough.

With a pencil in his hand, Izuku placed his other one over his heart. "Do you still sometimes feel like your heart beats really fast?"

Eri thought, then nodded.

Izuku smiled sympathetically. "Still every morning, Eri?"

She nodded again, rubbing her arm. Sharing a bedroom, Izuku noticed how the little girl would wake up in the middle of the night – or early morning – with a gasp. That happened too often. She'd gasp and cry and whimper and look around the room desperately. Her fingers would shiver and she would pant in an attempt to breathe normally. He'd wake up and hug her and talk to her and remind her that _'everything's okay'_ because that was what his mom would do whenever he'd wake up to those morning panic attacks.

It felt like dying.

He hated it. He hated it even more now, knowing Eri was experiencing it as well.

Finishing with the first paper, front and back, he switched to the other one which focused more on repetitive behaviors.

This wasn't right. She wasn't supposed to be here. She was meant to be happy and playing with other kids and going down slides and playing with toys and just, well, not… here.

She was scared of the world, scared of people, scared of unfamiliar things, scared of the unexpected, and just didn't seem interested in toys or dolls. She was obsessed with hands for some reason. She'd draw them regularly, and whenever Izuku tried to introduce her to someone, she'd look at the person's hands first. He and his mother had noticed that, and after informing Dr. Haru, the woman decided to take it slow and wait until Eri felt comfortable around her before they could look into the issue. Her Sleep Therapy Quirk wouldn't work if Eri couldn't relax.

Done with the papers, he placed them on the table and leaned back against the beanbag and let Eri rest against his side. He understood why she didn't like being here, but he didn't want her to feel under pressure every time they came here. If a cuddle eased her nerves, then so be it.

When Haru came back, she sat on the floor to get closer to them. "I'm glad to see you again," the lady said happily, collecting the papers. "Alright now, Eri. We're going to do something different today, okay?"

Out of habit, Eri glanced at Izuku, and when seeing his calm expression, she gave the woman a shy nod.

"Okay, Eri. Now, over here – I have something for you." She dragged over one of the plastic boxes and flipped the hatch open. "You've got lots of toys in here. Now, I'm going to let you play with your big brother for a while. Just explore and see what's in here. Is that okay with you?"

Eri eyed the box, then gave another shy nod.

"Alright. I'm going to leave the timer here," Haru said, showing the elephant shaped timer and placing it aside.

While Eri was too distracted by the woman, Izuku noticed the tiny blinking light on the elephant's head. A camera. Izuku understood. Knowing Eri wouldn't behave normally around her, Haru was going to have to leave the room. She was going to either monitor them from another room, or record the event so she could have a look at the tape later. She quickly glanced at Izuku to make sure he understood what was happening. He grinned sweetly, letting her know he got the message.

"I'm going to leave you two alone. If the little elephant rings, that means I'll be back soon. Okay?" The doctor waited until Eri responded with a third nod before she decided to leave them alone.

"Want to take a look with me, Eri?" On the floor, Izuku dragged the box closer to them. Inside, there were dolls, tiny Hero figures, building blocks, plastic dinosaurs, plush animals, a hat, a cape, toy cars and helicopters, and other random items, like straws and spoons.

He knew immediately what she would and wouldn't like. Whenever he took her to toy stores, she never wanted dolls or cute teddy bears, and she never seemed interested in whatever the store had. Instead, he'd get her things that didn't have eyes or seemed overly cutesy. She liked to play with Legos and kinetic sand. She liked drawing and creating things out of magnetic building toys.

To give her a chance to see everything in the box, he scattered the items out on the floor so she could pick what interested her. It took a little persuading for her to stop looking back at the door, but as soon as he got her attention, she took over, inspecting the many different figures and asking who some of the Hero figures were supposed to be.

They both ended up building a mini-city using Legos, toy vehicles and placing a few heroes here and there. For a teenage boy, Izuku didn't seem embarrassed to be playing along with Eri. He'd never had siblings to play with when he was younger, and the kids around the neighborhood and at school weren't friendly to him. He'd been shoved around at playgrounds, had moist dirt smeared in his face, and had plenty of violent attacks until he understood it was safer to stay away from other kids. So, in the end, he had no one.

Haru watched the small laptop screen from another room. Eri had a tiara on, and she grabbed a cape and clumsily pushed it against Izuku's shoulder. He chuckled and helped her wrap it around him before she reached up to add a Lego block to her tower. He helped lifted her up so she could snap it in place, praising her hard work.

The tip of Haru's pencil hovered over her notes. She remembered the first few times she'd seen Izuku at her office, small and nervous and fidgeting, self-esteem deep underground, gauze wrapped around his head and arms. He was a smart little cookie, she had to admit, but, at some point, it was clear he had lost the will to keep living. His dreams had died, and the fire of his soul followed close behind.

She watched the screen as Izuku giggled when Eri touched his head with a spoon, pretending it was a wand. The boy had a now goal, and the girl needed him more than anything. It was a match to help both sides. Izuku's mother had informed her about her son going with a 'new friend' to an aquarium. Izuku wanted to get Eri used to other people; however, Izuku was a lonely boy, and by trying to help Eri, he was unknowingly helping himself.

He had kept his distance from people because, in his mind, staying away was safer than risking it and getting humiliated. As a loner, he had chosen to avoid interacting with others, which hadn't helped his already tainted self-confidence.

Now, he was forcing himself to interact with others, because even he knew he wouldn't be able to help Eri alone.

…

Back at home, Izuku had given Eri papers and crayons to keep her entertained while his mother messed with the rice cooker in their small kitchen. On the sofa, he checked his phone again. Ochaco hadn't spoken to him today. She was a UA student, after all, so he figured she was probably busy with school work. He flipped through the channels and, for a split second, he passed over a news program and he almost heard the words _'UA'_ and _'injured students'_. Without thinking, he pressed the buttons on the remote and flipped back to the channel.

Footage of police vehicles lined up right outside the school almost made his heart stop.

"– _Investigators are still looking into the issue. The villains captured will be taken into custody, and surveillance footage will be analyzed for further information. The three injured teachers aren't in life-threatening danger for the time being, and two students had minor injuries–"_ Everything else was cotton in Izuku's ears. A rush of heat crawled up the back of his neck. It was suddenly hard to swallow.

He grabbed his phone with shaky fingers and scrolled to find Ochaco's name. Had she been in that class? If so, was she alright? Should he call, just to make sure? Was that okay? He peeked to see if his mother was still occupied in the kitchen, and then made sure Eri was too distracted to see how worried he seemed. Taking a deep breath, he pressed ' _Call'_ and waited nervously, his hand fisting his pants.

First ring–

 _What if she was in the hospital?_

Second ring–

 _How badly was she hurt?_

Third ring–

 _Even if she hadn't be involved, he had make sure–_

The ringing stopped abruptly and Izuku instinctively tensed up.

"I… eh…" His mouth moved on its own. He hadn't thought this through.

" _Midoriya!"_ That was her voice.

He almost chocked on his own saliva. "Uraraka!"

" _I–"_

"I was just…"

They spoke over each other. When he decided to give her a chance to talk, she did the same on her side, which only resulted in awkward silence. Eri blinked up at him curiously. He gave her a tiny grin to show her everything was okay. When she turned back to her doodle, Izku sighed.

"I… I saw the news and…" He made sure to keep his voice down. "I… just… wanted to check if you're okay…"

" _I'm fine, I'm fine! Really!"_ she assured him. He could just imagine her waving her hands in front of her. _"It's… two of my classmates got hurt; Tsuyu and Mineta. I'm not sure what really happened. Everything was so fast…"_ She was scared, and he couldn't blame her. _"The teachers got really hurt. I don't know how bad it could've gotten if All Might hadn't…"_

So it had been her class after all. "I understand." He wasn't in her situation, but he knew she was still dealing with the aftershock of it all. "I'm… I'm just glad you're okay. I, umm... call me if you need to talk, okay?" He knew he wasn't one for conversations, but if a little talk would ease her worries, then he'd try his best.

" _Thanks, Midoriya. I called my parents and told them what happened. They're a little worried something else will happen. They've been fine about me living by myself, but after what happened… I might ask one of my friends if I could stay over for a little while; you know, just until things calm down a little."_

He understood what she meant. Her school had been targeted, and the incident was on the news. UA was already in the spotlight due to All Might becoming a teacher there, and now, after this, he was sure reporters would be all over the students to know more.

Izuku felt his mother's presence. With her apron still on, she looked at him worriedly while wiping her hands with a rag. She was too observant sometimes. She was too far to hear him, but she must've seen the distress written all over his face.

"Alright," he whispered. "Just be safe, okay?"

" _Hmm! Don't worry!"_

Izuku noticed Eri staring at him intensely, her drawing no longer grabbing her attention. She tilted her head when she heard Ochaco's voice from the phone, recognizing that voice.

Izuku smiled kindly. "Yeah, that's Uraraka on the phone," he told her, confirming her suspicions.

Just like last time, Eri pointed to her cheeks, remembering the pink circles on Ochaco's cheeks.

" _Oh, is Eri there?"_ Ochaco asked excitedly.

Izuku chuckled lightly. "Yeah, she's right here."

" _Awww! Tell her I said hi!"_

Izuku leaned down to Eri's level. "She says hi, Eri. Do you want to hear her?" Izuku offered, holding the phone next to her ear. Eri blinked at him in confusion, but released a tiny gasp when she heard the voice through the phone.

" _Eri!"_ Ochaco said cheerfully. _"Hi, Eri! It's me, Ochaco, remember?"_

Eri nodded and looked at her big brother in amazement. He chuckled.

Even though Ochaco couldn't see her nod, she kept going. _"I miss you, Eri! Let's see each other soon, okay?"_

Eri gave another.

"Is that your new friend?" Inko finally asked, standing a little closer.

"Yeah, that's her."

 _It's a girl –_ Inko wanted to blurt out. When Izuku had told of a friend known as Uraraka, she hadn't expected this. Izuku had a friend; and not just a friend, a girl as a friend. She wanted to point that out so badly, but that wouldn't do. So, she settled with something different. "Would she like to come over?"

Izuku dropped his phone, chocking on his own voice.

"If she would like to, of course," she added politely.

Izuku's face was priceless. He was blushing from ear to ear, his jaw hung open, and she could've sworn his pupils turned into spinning swirls. Of course her son would react in such an exaggerated manner.

" _Midoriya? A-Are you there?"_ Ochaco's voice buzzed through the phone, snapping Izuku from his trance.

"Ah – Yea – Yeah, I'm… I'm here! I'm here!" Izuku stuttered, snatching the phone from the floor. His face was still a bright pink.

" _Was that your mom?"_

"I… uh – yeah…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "She's… wondering if you want to… you know, come over?" He wanted to slap himself. _Stay cool, stay cool…_

" _Really? I… I mean… if it's not any trouble…"_

"It's – It's fine, really," he assured her, feeling sweat around his neck.

"It's alright," Inko insisted kindly. "She could join us for dinner."

Izuku gulped loudly. "If… If y-you want to… I mean…"

" _I'd love to!"_

This… wasn't what he had expected when deciding to call her. How did he end up inviting her over? After exchanging goodbyes, he ended the call and went limp, sinking into the sofa and staring up at the ceiling.

Inko giggled. "She seems nice, honey."

…

"Thank you for having me over," Ochaco greeted, bowing in front of the door, her bag hanging from her shoulder.

"Oh, you're always welcome, sweetie." Inko stepped aside to let her in. "Please sit down somewhere. I'll get dinner ready soon."

To Inko, Ochaco was what those two kids truly needed. She was friendly, talkative, and just so positive. Inko had to resist those motherly instincts to pinch those rounded cheeks. She had expected her son to be a muttering mess the second the girl greeted him, but, to her surprise, he only greeted her back bashfully. He had known her for a few days, which meant he was somewhat used to her by now.

Inko couldn't be happier.

"Eri!" Ochaco bent down to the girl's level, extending her hand. "Awww, I'm happy to see you again, Eri!" She said with a tiny head tilt, smiling brightly.

Eri slowly reach and grabbed her hand, showing a tiny smile of her own. Izuku didn't miss that.

Ochaco saw the crayons and papers on the table.

"Watch 'a doing here? Are you drawing?" she cooed.

Eri nodded without hesitation, which Izuku also caught.

"Oh, is that the fish we saw?" Ochaco pointed at the childishly drawn yellow and blue striped fish with a chain of bubbles from its mouth. There were also red and yellow grass-like lines beneath it – seaweed, probably. "It's so pretty. Good job, Eri!" she praised. "You're so talented." When she moved the paper, she saw other papers beneath it. "Oh, you did more. Can I see?"

When Eri gave another nod, Ochaco sat on the floor and sifted through the drawings. She felt Izuku take a seat on the sofa behind her, looking at the drawings from over her shoulder. She had drawn a spotted stingray, or what Ochaco assumed was supposed to be a stingray. There was also a clownfish and a brown and green turtle.

"You're really good at this, Eri. Keep it up!" Ochaco encouraged, grinning widely.

Eri fiddled with the ends of her dress and smiled, and this time, she didn't bother to hide it. Eri got started on another doodle and Ochaco sat down next to Izuku.

"She's so sweet," Ochaco commented.

"Yeah…"

For a while, it seemed like the only noise was the rubbing of Eri's crayon over the paper, smearing the color to draw a pink star.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Izuku asked carefully. He was ready to back out if she felt uncomfortable.

Ochaco rubbed her arm. "Well… It _was_ scary, but I feel better now. It's all thanks to All Might, Thirteen and Mister Aizawa. And I asked around. Tsuyu and Mineta are okay now, and the teachers are still healing." She looked down at her lap. "I'm just glad everyone's alive."

Izuku gave her a node of understanding.

"Still…" Her fists tightened. "It was scary, but I won't give up here. I got this far, I can't give up now. I need to get stronger so people don't get hurt by scary Villains like those." She wasn't going to let this stop her. She had climbed this far up the rope, and she wasn't ready to let go now. "Even if it's scary, I'm gonna do my best!"

Izuku blinked at her once, then twice, before giving her a determined smile. "Huh!" he agreed enthusiastically. "Do your best – I know you'll get there!" he told her, hold a fist up. "I'll be cheering you on."

"I'll work hard then!" She mimicked his enthusiasm.

Inko cleared her throat, gaining their attention.

The mother smiled. "Come on, kids, dinner's ready."

To Ochaco's delight, it looked like Inko had prepared dinner with the new guest in mind. She was used to penny-pinching and deciding her food according to what she could afford. It wasn't a healthy habit, but it was enough to get her through the day. She could fix her diet later, once she becomes a Hero. She was still incredibly grateful for the mouth-watering food in front of her. Steam danced over the white rice and the shrimp were nice and golden. The taste was godly and Ochaco was ready to cry because _this was just too good._

"You've got quite the appetite there," Inko said light-heartedly. "Have as much as you like. There's plenty for everyone."

"Thank you so much!" She felt slightly embarrassed, but this was too good and Inko was so nice – this family was made of sunshine and happiness and everything good in this world.

"Do you have classes tomorrow, dear?" Inko asked, grabbing a bowl.

"No, they gave us the week off," Ochaco informed her, using her chopsticks to grab tasty morsel.

"You can stay the night, if you like. I know we have another roll-up futon."

Izuku choked on his shrimp when he swallowed a big piece at the wrong time. While Ochaco fretted over her coughing friend, Inko did her best to not chuckle.

"I… uh – Is that really okay" Ochaco managed, one hand rubbing Izuku's back. "…I… I mean, I don't – I don't mean to impose or anything…"

"It's alright, dear. You're always welcome to stay." Inko took a drink from her cup. "I'm sure you're tired, being a UA student and all. I know our place isn't much, but if you feel comfortable enough, you can stay as long as you like."

Ochaco stared at her before turning to look at Izuku questioningly. He had stopped coughing and was rubbing his throat. He blinked at her, then quickly looked down shyly. "I mean… y-you can stay longer… if that's okay with you…" he mumbled, scratching his cheek.

Go home, or stay here? Ochaco played both scenarios in her head: Go back and be lonely, or stay here where she could have company of a dear friend… Izuku was so polite and gentle; and while slightly on the shy side, he was still friendly. Eri was quiet and skittish, but she seemed to not mind Ochaco being around. Izuku's mother was a friendly teddy bear. Being here, around such nice people, brought back memories; memories of her and her parents.

She remembered when her dad used to let her ride on his shoulder when she was little. She remembered how her parents used to buy her the cutest clothes and the softest plush toys just so she could feel like a kid. As a child, she hadn't realized the financial struggle her parents were battling, and felt selfish for not seeing that sooner. She had moved out to be closer to UA, but she had left her parents behind. Sure, it was only for a while, but she already felt homesick.

"…if that's not much trouble." Ochaco made her decision.

…

They had moved Izuku's futon near the door so they could make room (and comfortable space) for another futon. Ochaco would be sleeping right next to Eri's bed. It didn't feel appropriate for Izuku to sleep too close to his female friend, and if he left the room, Eri would surely panic, so he simply relocated his bedding next to the half-open door.

"Sorry, this isn't much…" Izuku said meekly.

Ochaco dropped her bag and shook her head no. "This is really exciting. I haven't been at a friend's place in a long time."

Izuku looked down, blushing slightly. "Hmm. Well… I need to help mom with the dishes. Make yourself comfortable…"

Eri, who had been standing by the doorway, followed him when he passed by, leaving Ochaco alone in the room. She plopped down over the white bedding and looked around the room. There were many unopened boxes lying around, and on the desk, a few All Might figures were lined up. Well, Izuku _had_ asked for the guy's signature, so those figures were no surprise. There was also a pink hairbrush with strands of white hair weaved through the teeth: Eri's hairbrush, most likely.

There was also a cat-shaped nightlight and a few children's books stacked neatly next to the bed. It seemed like Izuku used to collect All Might merchandise before he had decided to shove them aside to make room for his new little sister. Izuku was… something. She'd met kind-hearted people before, but he was levels beyond what she'd expected.

Sighing, she dragged her bag closer and fished out her phone. The USJ incident had been a disaster. What had started as a simple rescue exercise had ended with a a mess of purple smoke, a jumble of flying Villains, screaming students, and an up close look at a real battle between Heroes and Villains. All Might had taken a beating. Asui had managed to save Mineta from drowning at the Floor Zone, but not before the Villains could leave a few scratches on her here and there. That shark bite on her leg would most likely leave a mark.

 **Class 1-A**

You: _hi guys_

Sero: _she LIVES!_

Ashido: _where were you?_

Ashido: _ive been tagging you all day_

Ochaco smiled sadly and typed back.

You: _sorry_

You: _I turned off notifications_

You: _just needed some time_

Kirishima: _yeah after what happened I don't blame ya_

Hagakure: _that was scaryyyyy ;(_

Kaminari: _maaan that was a mess_

Kaminari: _we kicked ass tho_

Jiro: _you mean we kicked ass and you were being stupid_

Kaminari: _hey_

Kaminari: _I helped!_

Jiro: _as a stun gun_

Jiro: _That's about it_

Kaminari: _…_

Kaminari: _mean ;(((_

Iida: _Let us all learn from this experience..._

Kaminari: _can you type any slower lol_

Ashido: _any day now Iida XD_

Ojiro: _well_

Ojiro: _he's taking his time I guess_

Sero: _is he typing a biography or something_

Iida: _While it may not have been pleasant, as potential Heroes, we must understand that this is what it truly means to be a Hero. We must expect the unexpected, and be prepared for what is to come! Let this not be a hindrance, but a lesson to us all._

Jiro: _that wasn't worth my five minutes_

Kirishima: _Iida being Iida_

Kirishima: _anyway_

Kirishima: _that was a rough day_

Yaoyorozu: _let's just be thankful no one else got seriously hurt_

Ochaco rested on her side, clutching her phone closer, she typed: _Is Tsuyu okay? they took her to recovery girl right?_

Yaoyorozu: _Yes_

Yaoyorozu: _She went home. Don't worry_

Yaoyorozu: _I'm sure shes resting now_

You: _I'm so glad_

You: _I didn't hear from her all day ;(_

Ashido: _she got recovered I guess shes tired_

You: _yeah I guess_

Ashido: _are you gonna be ok tho ?_

Ashido: _Toru's_ _staying over_

Ashido: _wanna stay over too?_

Ochaco couldn't help but giggle lightly.

You: _im good_

You: _staying at a friend's place_

Ashido: _…_

Ashido: _let me guess_

Ashido: _your boyfriend again_

Ochaco almost dropped her phone and she ended up juggling it from hand to hand, her fingers shaking and her blush a deep red.

You: _ot_

You: _hes not my biyfruendd_

You: * _he's no_

You: _*hes not mmy byfrind_

Ashido: _LOOOL_

Jiro: _and I thought Kaminari couldn't type under pressure_

Ochaco placed her phone down so she could fan at her face with her hands. Her face was heating up and her efforts to fix things only made things worse.

You: _*boyfriend_

Ashido: _so he IS your boyfriend_

And worse.

Hagakure: _wait is it the same boy from before?_

Hagakure: _from the cat place_

Ashido: _cat café_

Hagakure: _that!_

She could hardly type with her fingers shivering so much.

You: _hes a friend_

You: _yeah from the cat place_

Jiro: _she found a boyfriend at a cat café?_

Jiro: _ooookay whatever floats your boat_

Jiro: _wait nevermind_

Jiro: _I just pictured it in my head. you'd totally go for a guy like that_

Hagakure: _so cuutee!_

Ochaco's mind was spinning uncontrollably. This was getting out of hand – _fix it,_ _fix it, fix it, fix it–_

"Umm… are you okay?" Izuku asked by the doorway, carrying a sleepy Eri.

Ochaco slapped her phone against the sheets face-down. " _Nothing!"_ she blurted out defensively.

He blinked. She blinked. They stared at each other awkwardly. Uncomfortable silence stretched.

"Uh…"

"Ah – I… I'm okay." Ochaco tried to laugh it off.

"…are… are you sure? I mean…"

"–fine! I'm fine!" Her fake giggle slowly died down. "Well… Goodnight!" She turned and yanked the blanket up to hide her red face.

"Good… night…" Izuku managed slowly.

She didn't hear him move fore away, but then, footsteps passed thumped a path around her, stopping by the bed. She heard the bed shift as Izuku tucked in the little girl.

"I'll be right over there, okay, Eri?"

"Hmm…" Eri hummed tiredly.

"Wake me up if you need me."

Ochaco heard a tiny smooch when Izuku brushed Eri's hair back and gave her a tiny kiss on the temple, right next to her little horn. He turned on the nightlight cat before turning off the lights. He plopped down over his own bedding tiredly and proceeded to remove the wrapping around his foot.

Outside the room, not too far away, Inko tiptoed around the apartment, picking up the forgotten crayons and papers. She passed over a number of childish drawings, then stopped as she reached a drawing that seemed different than the rest. Eri usually drew simple things such as flowers and animals and the sun. This… was of a black humanoid figure with long fingers and what looked like a beak. Eri had scribbled over the character's eyes, covering them.

A feeling of dread slowly sunk in, and Inko worriedly glanced at the half-open bedroom door a few feet away. Eri would regularly suffer through nightmares. Izuku was always there to hold her. He'd rub her back and hug her and let her know she was okay.

" _Bad dream again, Eri?"_ – But at one point – _"Want to talk about it? What was it about?"_

" _The Bird People…"_

Inko and Izuku began to suspect something wasn't right.

 **TBC**

* * *

 _Notes:_

 _-I know this is slow, but I need to get a few things out of the way before I can take the story into the deeper parts._

 _-The play room and waiting room were modeled after a few therapy rooms have been to._

 _-Yeah, I have to fill out those forums whenever I visit my psychiatrist. I don't know if they do that in other places, so I'm just going with what I know._

 _-They sometimes talked to my parents. They did have us in the same room once, but that was a disaster. I'm not sure how this works in other countries, or if this is okay there, so I'm just going with what I've gone through._

 _-Yeah, Eri drew that… She kind of reminds me of my niece. Her dad (let's just call him Endeavor, because he's that bad) was abusive. I gave her coloring pencils and she started to draw random things, and then she drew him but scribbled over his face._

 _-I just want to remind you that there are a few dark themes here and there. Yes, the warnings mentioned in the first chapter are there for a reason._

 _-I don't usually like doing multi-chapter stories, but I'm kind of glad I cut this into parts. I'm just now seeing how long this'll probably be._

 _-There might not be an update next week, just to let you know. No, I'm not going to put it on hold. I just have things to prepare for and I'll get back to writing._


	4. Chapter 4: Sinking Boat

**Where Golden Flowers Bloom**

 **Chapter 4: Sinking Boat**

 **SevenRenny**

" _Midoriya?"_

"…' _m here."_

" _Midoriya, speak to me, dear."_

"…"

" _Midoriya… I know this is hard… but whatever it is on your mind, I want you to let it out…"_

"… _I… Doctor, I… I can't do it…"_

" _You can't do what, Midoriya? Tell me, dear, it'll be okay…"_

" _Wh – Where… I… I don't… I don't want to k-keep going, Doctor… I can't d-do it… I…I …I'm s-sorry…"_

" _Are the flowers still there, Midoriya?"_

" _Dead…They… They're dead, I think…"_

" _Okay. Okay, sweetie… You're doing your best, and I'm proud of you…"_

"… _I can't… I can't do it… I c-can't do a-anything right…I… I'm tired, Doctor…"_

" _I understand. You're going through a lot… But I promise you… it'll get better…"_

" _I… I can't…"_

" _I promise you, it won't always be this bad…"_

"… _I can't live anymore, Doctor…"_

…

Izuku sighed into his pillow. It was still dark, but the ever-changing colors of the nightlight reminded him where he was. With his cheek sunken into the puffy pillow, he blinked and felt a feather-light trickle run down the corner of his eye and over the curve of his nose, plopping into the pillow and being absorbed. His arm slipped out from beneath his blanket to rub at his wet face.

 _Breathe, don't think back, breathe, shut down your mind._

It never seemed to work, but he was _trying_ ; because it was that, or he could give up – and he couldn't let go. Not again. Not now. Not when Eri needed him. So, he had to hold on, at least until Eri wouldn't need him anymore.

It was still the middle of the night, and his itchy, tired eyes slowly closed again, but he doubted he'd fall asleep anytime soon. He hadn't had a sleep-full night for months. His anxieties – he had been told – were keeping him up, keeping his body ready and alert. He wasn't in any danger, but his body, and the animal side of his brain, refused to believe that. Instincts were meant to keep him alive, but they gave off false-alarms all too often.

It was fine to be on alert; it wasn't when he needed to sleep or rest. It was fine to be careful of abusive people; but how could he tell who was mean and who was not? It was fine to be on the safe side; but did he really need this chamber of isolation? Sure, no devils could reach him in here, but no angels could reach out to him either. What was safe – what was not? How long would this last? Nothing was all good. Nothing was all bad. Where was the grey line in-between?

He sighed and turned to bury his face into the pillow. He heard the sound of someone turning in their sleep, and Izuku felt a familiar tingle at the back of his mind and stilled. He hoped it wouldn't happened again but–

In bed, Eri suddenly jolted, her body letting out a long wheeze, her sweaty, shivering hands struggled to unsuccessfully grip at the sheets as her unfocused eyes snapped open. Her breathing became erratic as she disparately looked around through sleep-fogged eyes.

Izuku focused himself to sit up. Thanks to the changing colors of the nightlight, he could see the bed in the dark. Without putting on his foot support, he heaved himself up and sluggishly made it over to Eri's bed, his foot limp and dragging across the floor.

"Shhh, Eri…" got on his knees and rested his elbows on the bed. It sounded like she was hyperventilating. He needed to hold her. He needed to let her know Big Brother was right here, but he couldn't just grab her – not when she was in this state.

He heard someone stir in their sheets; Ochaco, most likely.

"Eri? It's okay, Eri. Eri, can you hear me?" He kept his voice low, gentle, non-threatening. Her eyes were open, but her mind was still trapped in that frightening loop only she could see. He heard Ochaco sit up, but kept his attention on the matter at hand.

"Eri," he whispered, keeping his voice down to not frighten her. "Eri, it's okay. It's just a dream – you're safe. It's me, Izuku. Remember? Can you hear me?" He kept on a sad smile in case she could see him through the haze of nightmares and confusion. He held his hands out in front of her, waiting for her permission to get closer.

Her face was fear-stricken, but her wide eyes finally focused on him, tears shining in her eyes. He smiled at her. "There you are. See? It's okay."

Her tiny hands reached for his larger ones. Tears of relief rolled down her cheeks. "Izu – Izuku…" she hiccuped.

The second she grabbed his hands, he managed to sit on the bed before he gently leaned in and pulled her into his chest. "It's okay, Eri… I know. I know bad dreams are scary. Everyone gets bad dreams sometimes. But it's okay," he promised her, stroking the back of her head. He felt her grip the front of his shirt, nuzzling her face into his chest, making sure he was real. "It's okay… I'm here. It's okay…"

Ochaco rubbed at her eyes and worriedly got up. "Is… Is she okay?"

Eri froze in Izuku's arms, but he gently rubbed her back comfortingly. "Eri, look. Do you remember Uraraka?" he whispered down at her. "She was with us when we saw the fish. Remember?" he asked sweetly.

After a minute to think it over, Eri slowly turned her face just enough to see Ochaco sitting on the edge of the bed. Even though she felt sleep deprived, Ochaco still managed to smiled and wave at the little girl.

A hint of recognition glinted in Eri's eyes. She hesitantly let go of Izuku's shirt and reached up to touch Ochaco's palm with her fingertips, conforming her to be real. Ochaco tilted her head cutely and ever so slowly moved her hand forward so that their hands were pressed flat against each other, their fingers lining up. Ochaco's fingers were considerably longer and the pink pads at the ends of her fingertips didn't touch Eri's fingers.

"Remember me, Eri?" Ochaco asked sweetly.

Eri gave a tiny nod before sighing and leaning into Izuku's chest, fatigue taking over. He held her close and Ochaco helped pull the blanket over both Eri and Izuku. Eri slowly closed her wet eyes as her big brother rubbed her shoulder and back tenderly.

"Thanks," Izuku whispered to Ochaco, relaxing.

Ochaco reached out and brushed Eri's cheek with the back of her hand, rubbing away tears. The glow from the nightlight turned a lovely pink.

"Does…" Ochaco feared to ask. "Does this happen a lot?" she managed to ask in a low voice, not wanting to disturb Eri.

Izuku gazed down at the little girl sadly. "She's… She's doing better now. She used to wake up a few times a night."

"Poor Eri…" Ochaco said sympathetically, running the back of her hand over Eri's hair. The little girl's eyes kept fluttering, but the teenagers' hushed whispers seemed to calm her.

"I'm happy she recognized you," Izuku added softly. "She doesn't usually trust anyone easily. I… guess she knows you're safe now."

Ochaco gestured to the empty space of the bed. "Is it okay if I…?"

"Oh, go ahead. Here, let me just…" He drew in his legs so Ochaco could have an easier time crawling over to the other side of the bed. Relaxing over the covers, she sighed next to Eri. The red-eyed girl was between the two older kids. Through sleepy eyes, she looked at Izuku, then at Ochaco. She had two bodyguards now. She buried her face in Izuku's side and sighed. He kept a comforting hand over her back.

A few minutes, and the nightlight turned green.

After Izuku made sure Eri was asleep, he spoke in a low voice; "Thanks for being here, Uraraka. I think Eri likes having you around."

Ochaco blushed, flattered. "I like being here. I have so much fun with you guys," she whispered, beaming. Her pink cheeks still visible even after the nightlight had turned pink. She caught him staring at her. A tiny blush highlighted his cheeks and he quickly looked down, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

He was so different from the students at UA. Ochaco's classmates were either noisy, rambunctious, over-the-top, or just reserved. Izuku was… Izuku. In her mind, she had all of her friends' names in categories of _'BFF'_ to _'Close Friend'_ to _'Potential Friend'_ to _'Acquaintance'_. She didn't know why her mind had decided to create a whole separate category just for Izuku. There was no label for his category just yet.

She didn't know him for that long, but she already knew he was a sweet boy. He was polite, friendly, and slightly shy, and while it felt like he had the weight of the world on his shoulders, he still smiled freely. Ochaco figured out he was quick to react, remembering how fast he'd responded to Eri's disparate plea. The way his bright eyes analyzed everything hinted at keen intellect camouflaged beneath pages of politeness and insecurities.

Then, there was Eri, someone who was in dire need of professional help. She remembered what Izuku had told her, back during their visit to the aquarium: _"–she might've been abused..."_ If that were the case, then what would happen to Eri?

"Something on your mind?" Izuku asked in a hushed voice, carefully moving to rest on his side, facing Ochaco, with one hand over Eri.

Ochaco hesitated. "Is… I was just thinking… Is Eri going to be okay…? I mean…"

He understood what she was referring to and shamefully looked away. "We're… not sure yet. She's much better than she was before, and her doctor's doing her best to help," he said sadly.

Ochaco examined Eri's face. Abused. This child…

"Did they arrest who hurt her?" Ochaco asked fearfully.

To her horror, Izuku shook his head no. "We don't know who did it… Eri gets panic attacks when the officers tried talking to her. So far, they think whoever did this has the face of a bird… Not sure if it's Quirk related."

She thought it over. A bird's head… like Tokoyami? Maybe. Possibly.

"She keeps dreaming about it." He sighed. "I'm nervous she might start to be scared of people who look like that." He really didn't want that. Eri had freaked out after seeing an officer with the head of a rooster and a restaurant employee with a beak. While he understood why she'd rather be safe than sorry, he didn't want her to single people out just by their appearances. He had to teach her looks weren't everything; he just didn't know where to begin.

"Bird-looking people…" Ochaco hummed, thinking it over.

Izuku chuckled lightly. "Don't worry about it now. We'll figure something out later. It's late. Sorry, I didn't mean to keep you up."

She waved him off. "Don't say sorry, silly. Is she okay now?" she peeked at Eri who was snuggled up against Izuku.

With his hand draped over her, he felt her breathing; calm, steady.

"She's sleeping," he confirmed in relief. "Thanks for the help. Ah, you can go back to sleep."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I've got it covered."

Ochaco quietly crawled off the bed, trying her hardest to not move the springs in the mattress. Izuku stayed by Eri's side. Ochaco wanted to do the same, but it didn't feel appropriate to be in the same bed with them. He was doing everything possible for Eri, and Ochaco could only watch. What could she do? Was there anything for her to do? Eri feared 'bird-people'… Ochaco went back to her futon and thought it over. They needed to take things one step at a time. She knew who she could call for help in the morning, but she couldn't immediately go to that person. She needed Eri to understand 'bird-people' weren't scary. Where could they start, though? Would starting with simple birds be a good idea? But where could they find a place with nice birds? Where could they start?

…

Turned out, a simple Goggle search was enough.

They had to research the place and read their website before coming over the next day. Stepping off the bus, Ochaco waited for Izuku to help Eri off as well.

"We're here, Eri!" Ochaco declared happily.

Glory Bird Park was a wide park with a few gigantic glass domes. A snaky dirt path connected the domes' exits and entrances. Each half circle looked like a greenhouse dome. After Izuku paid for their entries, he politely thanked the employee who gave him a packet of bird treats and a folded map.

"Wah!" Ochaco gasped at the size of the map after Izuku opened it. It was a green map decorated with pictures of tiny birds and drawings illustrating which dome held which bird species. There were also numbers over the domes to help them get around. Izuku folded the map and offered Eri his hand.

"Should we go now, Eri?" He gave her a sweet smile.

She nervously glanced at the faraway domes, but then took Izuku's hand, squeezing it. She wasn't a fan of birds, but Big Brother Izuku would never take her somewhere she wouldn't like. She needed to trust him with this.

"It's okay," he assured her, sensing her discomfort. Kneeling to be eye level with her, he placed his hand under her chin and tilted her head up slightly so she could look at him. "If you want to go home, tell me, okay, Eri?" he told her with a gentle smile.

Of course, Big Brother Izuku wouldn't force her if she didn't want to. So far, he had only done everything to make her happy. He'd never do anything to upset her or harm her in any way. Big Brother was a good big brother.

"Do you still want to go in?" he asked her.

"Hmm." She gave him a node, and he smiled wider.

With one hand holding Ochaco's, and one holding Izuku's, the three went through the gate.

The first dome was loud and looked like a rain forest. Birds roamed freely, flying over their heads and shaking tree branches and attaching themselves to protruding décor attached to the glass walls. It was wet and damp in here, mostly due to the waterfall constructed in the center of the room. The calming mist formed a cloud at the bottom. A herd of parakeets huddled in branches around them – _visitors had snacks._

At first, Eri tried to hide her head in Izuku's jacket. He made sure to keep a protective arm over her, letting her know he was still here.

"Can I try?" Ochaco asked excitedly, pointing to the packet of bird treats in Izuku's front pocket.

"Oh, go ahead." He gladly slipped it out and handed it to her.

Inside were sticks of millet bird seeds. As soon as she pulled one out, two parakeets fluttered down, landing on a log near her. The smaller one slammed into the larger bird as they fought for space. The tiny bird flapped its wings to regain balance. Ochaco gasped when they decided to reach out with their clawed feet to pull the end of the millet stick closer.

More birds surrounded them, and one eventually slapped the back of Izuku's head with its wings when it landed on his shoulder. It nicked him on the ear impatiently.

" _Akk –!_ Okay, hold on, hold on," Izuku chuckled. Thankfully, Ochaco handed him a stick and he used that to redirect the bird's attention away from his ear. It chirped and tilted its head to nibble at the seeds. Two more birds landed on him; one on his other shoulder and one clumsily crushed into his mop of curly hair.

"Ah – oh, careful," he instinctively lifted a hand, ready to help the one struggling on his head. Ochaco was too busy holding in a giggle, but a tiny _pffft_ managed to slip out. The little parakeet managed to use its beak and claws to climb up. Izuku winced with every pinch.

Eri peeked out from behind his jacket. The little birds fluttered closer and in no time, Izuku had five birds perched on him. She tilted her head, interested. Those sharp claws and curved beaks didn't leave a scratch on Izuku.

One climbed on Ochaco's arm to get at the stick. "Wanna try, Eri?" Ochaco knelt and showed Eri the yellow bird nibbling on the stick. Eri backed away, her back pressing against Izuku's legs.

"It's okay, Eri. Remember what I told you?" He asked her gently. "When we first met – do you remember?"

Eri looked up at him innocently, then gave him a simple nod before turning to glance at the bird on Ochaco's arm. Izuku knelt down as well and gently held Eri's hand. Ochaco carefully turned the stick, placing the wooden handle in Eri's tiny hand. Izuku kept his hand against Eri's and the bird on Ochaco's arm scooted off her and used Izuku's hand as a platform to get on Eri's.

She whimpered as soon as she felt the tiny claws grab at her fingers, but relaxed, knowing Izuku was still there, holding her hand steady, making sure she was safe. Hearing tiny clicks and cracks, she noticed the bird nibbling at the seeds, not minding the moving platform beneath its feet. Feeling accomplished, she smiled lightly and looked at Izuku with wide eyes.

"Good job, Eri," he praised, grinning.

" _Awww_ – this is so cute!" Ochaco cooed at the sight.

For an enclosure built for Parakeets, it was like a mini forest, with long grass and tiny nests on tall trees. There were also signs here and there, giving them info on not just the birds, but the structure of the dome itself. The glass around the dome was of a material birds could see, but not people. It also allowed for sunlight to pass through and regulated indoor temperatures.

The next dome was much noisier. These parrots were bigger and looked much more intimidating than the previews birds. A scarlet macaw _flap-flap-flapped_ over to a long pole, landing on the thin stand, opening the side hatch with its beak and letting a piece of red fruit drop out. Before it could fly down and take it, a blue macaw skilfully swooped in and snatched it.

Eri tugged on Izuku's sleeve and pointed at an orange parrot – a Sun Conure – tilting its head at them. It had a grape in its mouth, turning it round and around using its thick tongue.

"Ah, it's really pretty, huh?" Izuku said, and before he could react to the sound of flapping wings, he turned just in time to see a ball of orange feathers gliding towards him.

"Ah!" He gasped and instinctively tried to should his face. The parrot slowed midair and gracefully landed in his held out arm. "Eh?" He blinked. It blinked back, then used its foot to take out the grape and nibble a whole at the top, picking out the seed. He heard a click as Ochaco took a picture with her camera. She gave him a thumb's up.

He chuckled nervously. "Guess I'm a nicer branch… Oh, Eri, do you want to teach it?" He lowered his arm so she could reach. She slowly ran a finger over its tail feathers, after deeming the bird safe, she stroked it with four fingers, her eyes taking in the beauty of the creature.

It had a dangerously sharp beak, pointy claws, and the ability to cause harm, but it sat that, peacefully pinching at a grape. It had the choice to hurt if it wanted to, but it didn't. It looked armed, but it never used those weapons. Beautiful or dangerous, in the end, looks were deceiving.

"Pretty," she whispered, not catching how Ochaco stared at her in amazement. She hardly said a word around Ochaco, so hearing this, out here, had sent a wave of butterflies in Ochaco's chest. She looked over at Izuku. He was smiling gently at the little girl, pride shimmering in his eyes.

Unknown to Ochaco, he was going through memories, memories of the little girl clinging to him, crying, begging him to not leave her. It was hard to believe this was the same bruised, malnourished, dehydrated child he'd accidentally found near an alleyway. _"Please… don't go…"_

He never let her go. Never.

…

The more she got to spend time with them, the more Ochaco learned about Izuku. He had the habit of feeling nervous and unsure, but he also tended to push all that aside for Eri. That was a trait she came to admire of the boy. He wasn't afraid to show weakness, but he also pushed himself over the limits for others.

So when he nervously agreed to let an employee place an owl on arm, she had to give him props for his bravery.

"Alright, there ya' go," the man – who looked strangely like her father – clapped Izuku on the shoulder. Izuku stood rigid with a Great horned owl standing on his black gloved arm. The thick, tough material protected him from the owl's mighty claws. He tried to pull on a brave face, he truly tried, but it came out wobbly and cringey.

"Wah! You're so brave!" Ochaco said in awe. Eri was holding on to her hand, watching as her Big Brother held a bird of prey.

"Hah!" The man slapped Izuku's shoulder rather roughly. "Calm your nerves. I raised 'er myself."

Izuku flinched from the heavy slap. The owl looked at him with lazy eyes, unimpressed. "Y-Yeah… Okay…" Calm down. Calm down. The girls are watching, just calm down. It's just – there's an owl on his arm; no big deal. Nope. Nada. It's _fiiiine_ , totally–

It shifted to stand better on the leather glove, and Izuku almost _squeaked._

"Ar- Are you okay?" Ochaco asked nervously, seeing the distress in his expression. "It's not hurting you, is it?"

He gulped and chuckled awkwardly. "Oh, no. I'm fine. Just fine – It's okay, I've got it!"

The employee walked around him to go back in the enclosure. "Now hold it there, I'll get one for your missy." The owl followed the man's path, rotating its head all the way around to keep him in sight.

"Ah – eh, my what?" Izuku froze when the owl snapped its head around to stare at him.

Ochaco giggled. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Y – Yeah… Just, not used to holding an owl, is all…"

The owl on his arm sighed deeply, as if annoyed by him.

"Alrighty," the man grunted, holding an owl in each hand. "Jus' put on tha' glove." He nodded, gesturing to the black glove on the chair he'd been sleeping in before their arrival.

"Ah – oh, me?" Ochaco pointed to herself.

"Eye."

The glove was similar to the one Izuku had on, thick and strong and… damp inside… making her wonder who many people had had to put this on before her. Eri watched carefully from behind the older girl as the employee let the owl step onto her now gloved hand.

"There we go. Tawny owl. Cute, eh?" the man chuckled and stepped away, leaving Ochaco holding the brown bird by herself. She suddenly understood _why_ Izuku felt uncomfortable with this. Watching him struggle with this was amusing, but having to deal with the same task was something Ochaco hadn't been prepared for. It wasn't as intimidating as the one with Izuku, but the claws lethal claws were a reminded of their use. This was a wild animal. This didn't eat berries and grapes and apples and all those sweet, fruity treats. This could tear through skin and slice through muscle and hit bone.

And now, she was holding one.

Seeing the exact same expression on both the boy and the girl, the man snorted. Ignoring them, he knelt down to Eri's level and showed her the smallest of the owls. She peeked out from behind Ochaco's leg. The owl titled its head to the side. She tilted her head the other way; the owl did the same, copping her. It was tiny, smaller than the one Ochaco had.

"Northern saw-whet. Don't get any bigger than tha'. No need for gloves, she's harmless."

To Izuku and Ochaco's surprise, Eri let the bird carefully climb onto her hand without flinching back. It balled up and fluffed out its feathers. Its tiny legs reminded her of the many birds she'd held today. Birds had looked scary before, but not now. The parrots had frightened her, until Izuku showed her just how pretty they could be. The little owl's claws pinched, but didn't hurt. It wouldn't hurt her. It didn't have a reason to.

Izuku completely forgot about the horned owl and stared at Eri in amazement. She smiled at him brightly. She had done it by herself. She had stepped over that builder without his help. It was a start, but, sooner or later, she wouldn't need him as a crutch anymore.

The man chuckled. "Ha! Bravest of 'em all. Now, you all get over here for a photo before they get tired of ya'."

Stepping in front of the camera with owls on their arms; Eri in the middle of a giggling Ochaco and a proud Izuku – he was glad. The past wouldn't matter. His future wouldn't matter. It never had, and it never will. He was a sinking boat, covered in holes and sucking up water, carrying a little girl over dark waters. He was sinking, but as long as he got her to the other side, he wouldn't mind hitting the ocean's bottom then.

"Hold steady now!"

This useless boat wasn't so useless. No one had wanted it. No one believed it could be of any use.

"On three,"

But, it was the boat that would save this one tiny life.

"Two,"

Battered and barely holding on, it sailed.

"One–" _Flash!_

It'd sink to the bottom eventually, but, for now, it had a task to fulfill. The water would continue gushing in, but it wouldn't matter, as long as he got her to solid land.

…

Mitsuki ended the phone call and sighed. She should've done this a long time ago, long before things could've gotten this bad. She should've listened to Masaru. She should've paid more attention. She knew her son had a temper, but she'd hoped he would calm down as he got older. It never happened. His teenage stage was the loudest he'd ever been.

"How'd it go?" Masaru asked her, looking away from the vibrating rice cooker.

"He can see him tomorrow. Told them Katsuki doesn't have school this week and they booked an appointment."

They heard two boys yelling in another room.

"Well, they're lively," Masaru commented, returning to a pot he'd been stirring earlier.

Mitsuki returned the phone and turned on the tap. "Goes to show how badly he needed this."

"Are you still blaming yourself?" he asked calmly.

"I know, I know," she waved him off. "I'm not supposed to think like that. Doesn't mean I should've have acted sooner."

"Let's just be thankful he's doing better," he offered kindly. "That friend of his is handy, I should say."

Mitsuki snorted. "Can't believe the brat actually made a decent friend for once."

"Katsuki's come a long way." Masaru tapped the spoon against the lip of the pot to get rid of any droplets. "Now that he he's getting help, I'm sure he'll get better with time. It might be slow, but this is all new to him. This isn't easy for him, but he's trying."

Mitsuki handled the beeping rice cooker. Flipping the lid open, releasing the trapped steam, she grabbed a bowl then stopped, thinking deeply. "Think Inko and Izuku are doing okay?"

"Oh, you haven't called her, have you?" he asked, slightly surprised.

She shook her head no. "I don't know if she wants to listen to me anymore."

"Mitsuku, you know Inko would–"

"–Would never think like that. Yeah. I know. She's too sweet like that." That didn't make Mitsuki feel less guilty. Her weekly calls with Inko turned into bi-weekly calls, then she lost contact for a while. It turned out Inko was planning to move away with her son. Even though the chubby mother had assured her it had nothing to do with the feud between their sons, Mitsuki couldn't help but feel like they were running away from them – Mitsuki and her son.

Inko was a kind, gentle woman who forgave easily; however, aim at her son, and she would snap. Izuku was her baby; her lovable little boy. He was just like his mother: sweet and kind and helpful and polite… Too bad Katsuki was much more complicated. His first therapy session had been a disaster, with screaming and yelling and threats thrown around.

She'd known he had issues. She just hadn't realized to what degree. She feared the damage he'd done would be impossible to repair. Mitsuki and Masaru had tried to fix it. They'd paid Inko for the damage, apologized personally to both Inko and her son, and kept in contact with them.

They made sure to be up-to-date on Izuku's surgeries and had visited him a few times. Unfortunately, their phone calls shortened by the week, and after Inko informed them they'd be moving, but told them it was best they do not know to where, it became clear: Inko didn't want anything to do with them anymore.

And Mitsuki wouldn't blame her if that were the case. Katsuki had hurt Izuku. Katsuki was her son. Izuku was Inko's son. Mitsuki hurt Inko. Right now, it didn't matter if Inko forgave her or not. As long as Izuku was healing, then that was enough for her.

The boys in the other room yelled again. Well, Katsuki was yelling and Eijiro was laughing like a maniac. It sounded more like they were wrestling than playing video games. There was a loud _thump_ and the yelling escalated.

Mitsuki knocked on the door, his apron still on, before opening it to check on them. The two boys were in the midst of grappling on the floor after falling to the ground and bumping into a nightstand, their handheld video game consoles abandoned on the floor. While Katsuki looked ready to aggressively murder the other boy, Eijiro was chuckling, leaning his head back so Katsuki wouldn't grab at his face again.

"Oh, hey, Mr. Bakugo!" Eijiro greeted excitedly, as if almost being choked by Katsuki on the floor was a normal thing.

The father smiled gently. "Hope you buys are hungry. We'll have food on the table soon."

"Alright! _Agh–!_ " Eijiro grunted when Katsuki gave him one last shove into the floor before pushing off of him. Eijiro, however, managed to trip the other boy in return, and the fight continued with yelling from the blond's side, and laughing from from the other.

This redheaded boy was… interesting, to say the least. He was durable and could handle Katsuki's aggressive nature. He was friendly, but would fight back if Katsuki stepped out of line. He wouldn't allow himself to be bullied, but he still managed to become friends with this explosive boy. Masaru hoped this new friend would help repair all of Katsuki's wrongly built logic of the word. Maybe then, Katsuki wouldn't be so defensive to criticism.

This Eijiro boy had the same drive and energy as Katsuki, but it was clear Eijiro was more… stable and balanced, while Katsuki's tipped the seesaw to one side. They needed to distribute it evenly. According to Dr. Hibiki, Katsuki's superiority complex was due to environmental factors. He was always in his comfort zone, and, thanks to everyone around him, he had come to be believe he was the best, and that he was always right.

He was always levels higher than those around him, which prevented him from feeling challenged. He never lost, which gave him the idea that he was a winner at everything. He was praised for simply existing – praised for having a flashy Quirk, but never praised for his own efforts.

He was rewarded for all the wrong reasons.

Then there was his overall personality. It was clear he took after Mitsuki – to a degree. He, unfortunately, did not inherit her calmer demeanor. His rash behavior only added to his ego. His ego was the switch, and the people around him kept messing with it back and forth. They were fueling his desires, and, like an addictive drug, as soon as they stopped feeding him this energy, he went into withdrawal, feeling the need to be louder, to show off his discomfort, to let everyone know he hadn't lost his greatness.

Because being 'the greatest' was what made him Katsuki. What – or who – was he, if he wasn't the greatest?

Bad mouthing everyone wasn't a big deal.

Bullying other kids was.

Humiliating Inko's son to the point of causing irreversible damage was what had tensions rising in this house.

Masaru was used to his wife and son yelling and cursing at each other. She would slap the back of his head, and he would attempt to bite her arm when battling over the TV remote; that was what Masaru was used to seeing. He had honestly never expected a real fight to break out between them after getting that dreaded call one afternoon. He had to step in before either of them got hurt. In the end, the family remained unusually quiet after Katsuki stayed in his room with a red cheek from a slap to the face that had everyone stunned. Mitsuki had stayed on the sofa, sleeve turn, and hands cradling her head. The house was uncomfortable for a week or two.

Katsuki had crossed a line. Mitsuki had crossed a line.

Everything broke apart.

Masaru was in the middle of it all, having the task of stitching everything back together.

Hopefully, this Eijiro boy could led him a hand or two.

…

Izuku wasn't sure if Eri was ready for this just yet.

Waiting on a bench at an empty playground, Izuku prepared himself to meet this new friend of Ochaco's. He was slightly nervous, but Ochaco told him she'd do most of the talking. Inko had decided to see how things were going, considering that the playground was close to their apartment. She sat next to Izuku on the bench, happily asking Eri how today went. She was shown the photo they'd taken together. Fearful little Eri had held an actual owl.

"Oh, Eri, honey, you're so brave." Inko gave Eri a kiss on the head. "I'm so happy to hear you had fun, sweetie."

Ochaco checked her phone again and smiled. "He's on his way here. Should be close by now."

Izuku _really_ wasn't sure about this.

As if reading his mind, Ochaco gave him a playful pat on the shoulder. "It'll be fine. He's not mean. He's in my class and I told him what's going on. He said he'll be careful."

"Y – Yeah… Okay." He was just afraid it might backfire and have them starting from zero.

"Ah – that's him!" Ochaco hopped off the bench excitedly. "I'll go talk to him real quick." She ran for the person standing at the playground's entrance. Izuku felt as Eri tugged at his sleeve. She looked at him questioningly, then at the person Ochaco was talking to.

Izuku smiled at her sweetly. "Yeah, that's her friend."

She looked slightly troubled and grabbed at the front of her shirt.

"Ah, it's okay. He's nice!" he reassured her quickly. "He's studying to be a Hero, too!"

"Hero?" Eri whispered.

"Hmm. A Hero. Look, I'll be here, and you have Uraraka and mom here, too!" he held her hands. "Do you remember what I promised? When we first met?"

Eri gave him a shy nod. "…Promise?"

"Always!" He grinned.

"Always…" Eri repeated.

"Always," he promised.

He was full of promises, because how else could he be of any assistance to this word? He couldn't be a Hero. He couldn't do anything special. Keeping a promise to this little girl was all he could do…

…and he'd be damned if he couldn't even do that.

" _Midoriya!"_ Ochaco called, waving to him to get his attention. She ran back to them and held Eri's hand, keeping her close while Izuku went to greet this new person.

"Ah, thanks son much for helping out. I'm Izuku Midoriya, nice to meet you" Izuku politely introduced himself.

"Fumikage Tokoyami." A simple person of little words. He seemed to be the kind of person to speak only when necessary. With his beaked head, he nodded to Ochaco in the background. "She has told me of your predicament. I shall do whatever I can, but I cannot be certain of the outcome."

"It's alright. It's worth a try, right? Either way, I'm happy you came. " If things were to get out of hand, Izuku would be ready to interfere. He had been unsure about this at first, but after meeting Tokoyami personally, he felt more at ease. It seemed like he was a man of his word.

Eri kept hiding behind Ochaco as they got closer. "Eri, this is my friend. Wanna say hey?" Ochaco tried, using the friendliest voice possible.

Eri still looked unsure.

Tokoyami knelt on one knee, not wanting her to be afraid of his height. "Hello. Please, do not fear. I mean no harm."

Eri looked up at Ochaco for guidance, and after seeing the encouraging smile the older female was giving her, she nervously stepped forward, fiddling with her clothes.

"H… Hey, mister…" she stuttered.

"Greetings. May I know your name?" He already knew, but he wanted to pen an opportunity for her to communicate with him rather than letting Izuku and Ochaco do all the talking.

"…Eri…"

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Eri. Uraraks has spoken of you."

"Ochaco?" Eri asked, just to be sure.

"Yes. She's a classmate of mine, you see."

Eri was looking everywhere but at him. "A… A friend?"

Tokoyami took a moment to think. "…Yes. A friend."

Eri finally looked at him, taking in his avian features. Because of the beak and feathers, it was hard to judge his expression. His red eyes looked slightly intimidating, but he talked to her the same way Izuku, Ochaco and Inko talked to her. Then she remembered the bird she'd met earlier.

They could've hurt her, but they hadn't.

He could hurt her, but he wasn't.

He was, still, too similar to the people she feared. While backing away, the back of her shoe halted abruptly over the sand and she fell back.

Something with thick claw caught her before she could hit the ground. A dark mass had stretched out of Tokoyami's body and curled around her protectively. She stared at the creature of darkness with wide eyes.

It released her and hovered next to Tokoyami. "This is Dark Shadow. He may look scary, but he is harmless, I assure you."

"Yo!" Dark Shadow greeted enthusiastically.

Eri examined him with her eyes with interest. It was a bird! A _big_ bird. She slowly reached up and grabbed a thick claw. "Pretty…"

"I sure am!" Dark Shadow boasted.

Eri slowly smiled and looked back at Izuku with excitement. "Bird, Izuku!"

"Eh, ah, yeah. It's a bird." Izuku looked so surprised, he wasn't aware he was speaking.

From the bench, Inko watched the whole thing. Her son, Izuku, was dedicating himself to this. She was glad he'd made a decent friend, one who would help him in any way possible, and introduce him to more friends along the way. She could count on Ochaco to keep him safe while he kept Eri safe.

Hearing her phone ringing, Inko pulled out her phone. Oh, okay… it had been a while since she had last talked to them.

"Hello, Mitsuki," Inko greeted kindly, keeping her eyes on the group of friends around Eri.

" _Inko, honey. Been a while."_ Mitsuki sounded as confident as ever.

"Yes. I'm sorry we haven't spoken in a while."

" _Nah, I'm sure you have things to get done. How's Izuku?"_

"Oh, he's much better. The doctor said he could restore his foot after a surgery. "

" _That's great news! When's he getting it?"_

"We… haven't decided yet. Things came up," Inko explained without going into detail.

" _No rush. Just wanna see the squirt doing better."_

"Much better. He made a few friends here, too."

" _That's so great to hear! He's a sweetie – everyone's gonna be all over him there."_

Inko watched as Dark Shadow supported Eri while she climbed the steps to go down the slide. Ochaco cheered for her. Izuku was at the bottom of the slide, catching Eri as soon as she sailed down, giggling all the way.

"Yes… They're very nice to him."

" _Katsuki's calm down a lot. UA's not letting him do whatever he wants, thank goodness. He's new friend isn't taking any of his shit."_

"That's good to hear." Inko wasn't focusing on the phone anymore. Her eyes were fixated on her son as he laughed when Eri decided to put a flower on Dark Shadow's head.

She wanted this to last.

 _TBC_

* * *

 _Notes:_

 _-There we go. I'm sorry it took this long. I'm usually faster with these, but things have slowed down because of exams and all. I do still write every day, but in small amounts._

 _-I mentioned to a few people about visiting a place to see some owls. I did get to hold a few small ones (made sure to ask for their species and name) and I managed to get a photo with a few bigger ones (Siberian eagle owl, and a Snowy owl). They let my little niece hold a baby owl without using gloves. I stay around just to ask questions and because, well, I'm a sucker for animals._

 _-If you don't know what a Northern saw-whet owl looks like, please search it up. I'm glad I got to hold one._

 _-Yeah, it took me longer than expected to get to Katsuki. There's still a lot of explaining to do, but I hope we'll get to that eventually. I'm still taking this one step at a time, because there's so much to get through and I don't want to overwhelm you with it all at once._

 _-Yes, I did mention things will get darker as we keep going._

 _-I was planning to introduce Tokoyami later, but I saw a perfect opportunity here._


	5. Chapter 5: The Script

**Where Golden Flowers Bloom**

 **Chapter 5: The Script**

 **SevenRenny**

" _Fuckin–!"_

"Calm down," the bearded doctor ordered, his stern face unchanging; his legs crossed, one foot still dangling in the air.

Katsuki hunched in his seat, fingers clamping down around the armrest, teeth clinching. He hated this. He hated not having his way. He hated not being allowed to break whatever made him upset. He hated how the Charles Darwin lookalike seemed to have things under control – had _him_ under control. It irked him. He was Katsuki Bakugo! He wasn't some puppy that could be tamed with time and treats and corrective training. But, at the same time, a tiny, logical side of him knew why he was here. His mind was torn between wanting to both deny and accept the given medicine.

"Are you done?" The bearded man asked him nonchalantly, leaning to one side to fetch a limp red balloon from an open packet. The balloon dangled like a dead dog's tongue between the doctor's fingers. "I'm going to need an answer from you, Bakugo." The man's beard came to life. A second mouth opened just below his fat lips. The end of his beard moved like a snake's tail and grabbed the balloon, brought it to mouth 2# and started blowing at it.

Katsuki huffed in irritation and flicked away the already ruined rubber from his fingers, adding it to the building pile in the trash can by his seat. There were a pew pieces still on his trousers when the balloon had popped.

"Yeah, whatever, old man." Katsuki relaxed his shouldered and slouched back.

"Alright," the doctor said professionally. His beard finished blowing up the balloon then, with impressive skill, knotted the rubber with his tentacle-like beard and slapped it at Katsuki's direction. The boy caught it with both hands as it floated to him, holding it between his spread-apart knees as he leaned over slightly on his chair, tipping his head down. He saw his reflection on the balloon; his sharp, but intelligent eyes. He was smart. He knew he was smarter than others; but at what cost?

"Bakugo?"

Katsuki glared at the doctor.

The man seemed unfazed. The second mouth in his beard would sometimes open and reveal tiny shark teeth. "Do you want to start over?"

Katsuki stared at the man long and hard.

"You can always leave if you want. No one's making you stay." The doctor gestured to the door with a wrinkly finger. "Door's right there."

Damn him. _Damn him for making Katsuki feel like a puppet beneath strings!_ Sure, he had a choice – but didn't at the same time. Whatever he chose, he was already boxed in. The doctor was just teasing a caged jaguar with keys just out of rich at this point. _Take a step closer, I dare you._

"I'm staying," Katsuki said stubbornly, holding the balloon firmly in his hands.

The doctor's expression, like always, didn't change. After their weekly talks, Katsuki figured this guy had only one face to show. His mother even joked – (had it even been a joke?) –the only reason the doctor was still in one piece was due to his unchanging facial structure that tricked Katsuki's facial recognition into thinking the doctor's face was part of the room's furniture.

"You made your choice," The doctor narrated; if was as if Katsuki was an endangered species that needed to be studied. The boy was used to this man by now. "Just know, you can–" he pointed at the door, "–at any time."

"Yeah, yeah," Katsuki grumbled, rubbing the balloon around in his palms.

"Take a moment." The doctor leaned back and the second mouth below his fat bottom lips yawned. The tip of his beard pointed at the trashcan by Katsuki's seat. "We'll get to what caused that later, for now, how about you tell me a little about how you've been doing, my boy?"

Katsuki tried to not glare at the man, so, instead, he glared at the wall. "Fine."

"Are you still on the prescribed medication?" the man continued, unfazed.

"Yeah." His answers were short and immediate. He wanted to get this over with.

"Are you doing well at school?"

"'course I am." Katsuki did the mistake of letting his anger leak through his throat this time.

"Of course you are," Dr. Yuuta repeated the boy's answer like a recording.

The sound of the balloon being squeezed in his hands caused him to breathe deeply and readjust his hold on the delicate object, opting to hold it with the tips of his fingers rather than his sweaty palms. He didn't want to add another melting rubber to the pile in the trash near his feet.

Katsuki felt the pitiful look the doctor was giving him. He was looking down on him. What was going on in that doctor's head right now? _Oh, what a poor boy._ _So young! So lonely! So in need of mama's love! Now look at him, visiting a doctor, all because he thinks no one understands –_ and so on. He thought he could hide it from him. He thought he could look down on him and hide it and get away with it!

"Your smart, Bakugo," Dr. Yuuta stated without changing his expression. "That brain of yours needs a workout. Any smart friends to keep up with you at school?" He sounded uninterested in the subject at hand, but Katsuki knew him. He knew it was how the man picked up on small details without giving anything away.

He huffed. "No. Bunch of idiots, they're not friends."

"They don't meet your standards?"

"Just don't need any."

"What do you do to mentally entertain yourself, then?"

Katsuki shrugged carelessly. "Video games. Read."

"And you go mountain climbing by yourself regularly, correct? Have you ever thought of bringing someone along?"

"Huh?" Katsuki was honestly confused by the suggestion.

"Can I ask you a series of connected questions, Bakugo?" Dr. Yuuta asked simply. "What do you want?"

"What?"

"What do you want?" the doctor repeated. "Let's make a list. What do you want?"

Katsuki narrowed his eyed suspiciously. "I want to win. I _will_ be the next number one Hero!" he declared.

"And then?" The doctor was unimpressed.

" _And then?_ I'll smash every Villain skull in my way! I'll win, and I'll keep winning."

"And then?"

"Then _what?_ " Katsuki almost shouted, and the balloon he was unknowingly squeezing in his hands exploded with a loud _Pop_ , just like the many others before it. His tight fists clinched and unclenched at nothing like lobster claws. The doctor never moved as the boy breathed through his anger. After a few minutes, the doctor's beard blew another green balloon and slapped that one over to the boy as another replacement.

"You want to win, and that's not a bad thing," Dr. Yuuta said. "But I have to remind you, you're only looking at the finish line. You still have a race to pass."

"I know that," Katsuki grumbled.

"Running nonstop without stopping for fuel won't do you any good, Bakugo."

"Watch me."

"You're a smart, strong kid, but I think you've heard that enough by now," the doctor suddenly added.

That stopped Katsuki from thinking of a comeback. "Eh?"

"Bakugo, whether you like it or not, you're still a human being; a mammal, with blood and nerves and a pumping heart and so on. You have a strong will, but for someone oh so mighty, you seem to not care about making yourself happy." He lifted two wrinkly fingers. "Your path will split. You can–" he wiggled one finger. "–continue on your current track, train yourself, focus on nothing but become Number One and run yourself dry; or–" he held up to fingers. "You could balance things out. You want to be Number One, but let's keep that for the future, and let's live now, Bakugo."

Katsuki blinked, unsure about the whole thing.

"Instead of training by yourself, you can train with a partner, a classmate you feel comfortable with. Instead of playing video games on your own, I'm sure you'll find someone who'd want to play as well. If you know a classmate who likes to go mountain climbing, why not ask them to tag along?"

Realization slowly sunk in, and Katsuki didn't like what that doctor was hinting at.

"Live a little, Bakugo. You're still a student. I'm not asking you to stop trying hard to achieve your dreams. I'm just asking you to try and have fun while doing it."

Katsuki gripped the balloon, then breathed in deeply to try and release some build up tension from within. He lowered his head so his heir could shadow over his face. "Don't need' m."

"You don't need those in your class, or you don't need anyone in general?"

"I'm fine on my own." He knew where this was going.

"Alright." The man clicked his tongue. "If you were to have a _partner_ , how would you describe them?"

"I don't _need_ a partner."

"Because you want to be the best, and having someone in your level, or over your level, will bother you."

Katsuki gave him a hard glare.

"Okay. If you don't want someone above or on your level, but you also don't want anyone below your level because they _'won't keep up'–_ " he quoted Katsuki from his earlier visit. "–with you, what _do_ you want, Bakugo?" he finally asked. "What would make you happy? Your goal is still years away, and if this built up anger's causing you difficulties in simple everyday activities, it could be a hazard, and not just to you and your classmates, but to the people you're supposed to be saving in the future as well. A powerful Hero such as yourself with no target is a lawsuit waiting to happen. You can break your enemies, maybe; but breaking buildings and civilians is a whole nothing thing."

Katsuki had to bite his tongue. "I don't need you to tell me that."

"Because…?" The man reached over to grab a Senbei from a nearby bowl.

Because he already knew. Oh, he knew. He knew the damage he could do – he had done – he could repeat. He didn't need to say it out loud for Yuuta to know his answer.

Katsuki glared at his reflection on the balloon. "Hey, Doc."

The man lowered the rice cracker to his lower lip and the jaws in his beard took a bite at it.

"What's the difference?" the boy finally asked, still looking at himself in the balloon.

The man didn't seem to care when the tail of his beard grabbed the rest of the rice cracker from his hand and ate it. He stayed quiet, giving his patient time to think and collect himself. "The difference?" He asked when it seemed like Katsuki wouldn't explain any further.

…

Time was a crucial thing. He didn't have time for this nonsense. Why did he have to dry his eyes studying things he'd never need or spend any more hours in a sitting position when he could be elsewhere doing his body good instead of being around background characters that'd eventually fade into nonexistence? He was Katsuki Bakugo, the main character of this story; he had main stage! His script was the most important! Cameras all pointed at him.

His role was simple: be the best _Katsuki Bakugo_ he could be; show the audience only _he_ deserved that spot, no one else. His story, is short, was supposed to follow the general plot points of a regular super hero story: He'd start with a Hero to look up to, then find a dream in that person, then slowly build his way up and knock that Hero off his throne and take his place. He'd be on top of the world. If he could take out the greatest, than that would be his prized medal. He'd be the best of the best, and no one could prove him otherwise.

Huh… He'd been a fool to think following a script without a director would end well for him.

The script he so dearly trusted told him what to say, what to do, how to behave, who to shrug at. He never questioned it – not once. Why would he? The script knew all. He'd have he's ups and downs and battles on the sides, but a Hero he'd become, the script told him so, he told him so, they told him so, he would be so.

A joke, he was, so.

While he'd been too busy bitching about that broccoli nerd that seemed to _always_ stick around and whine about the same script – _his script!_ – and still not back down even after being diagnosed as Quirkless, Katsuki hadn't realized his growing mistake. Just when had his Script developed a face and red eyes and a commanding voice similar to his own? Just when had his Script stopped guiding him and started breathing down his neck? Just when had reflections made him angry and the echoes of his own voice drive him into punching walls?

The Script was, in one way or another, the only thing that seemed right. If The Script wasn't right then… what was…?

He'd always gotten away with whatever the public let him get away with. Being told he could have something, or that he was wrong, was a new thing to him. Nothing bad ever happened when he'd punched the boy in the face. Instead, something wild in his chest seemed to flutter. As a child, he'd been very energetic and clever and, unfortunately, was easily bored. He'd breaks toys and solved puzzles and beat games, but he'd still feel bored. The other kids could never understand him. They were nowhere near his lever of intelligence. It was just him and The Script.

That boy, Deku, had complicated things even more. He'd say nice words and seemed to like the same things Katsuki liked, but he wasn't about to fall for that trap door. No. The Script warned him. He breathed down the back of his neck and snarled at him to _wake the fuck up!_ – to keep his guard up, because no one could be this giving and forgiving. Unwanted kids would usually scatter away or hold grudges. This _Deku_ took a bit more time, but aside from _not following_ him and his crew anymore, he still had that annoying habit of jumping into kiddie fights to _be a hero._

It had been to teach him a lesson. To keep him away. They were children for fuck sakes… Just when had it all gone so wrong?

He had been a bored child. Pushing the smaller, much weaker boy's face to the ground and allowing another boy to join in and pin the boy down by sitting on his back… it had triggered a rush of energy within him – a switch of enjoyment. Finally, something he had control over, something to keep his high maintenance mind entertained.

The Script let him be on guard, reminding him people had masks; reminding him helpful hands were deceiving ones in disguise; reminding him kind eyes were looks of pity; reminding him kind words were nothing but lies, distractions; reminding him someone else wanted his Script from him. Someone else wanted his Number One spot.

He couldn't have that. He'd fight for that spot. That Quirkless shitstain wouldn't get in his way. Not him. _Especially not him_. _He could go ahead and wriggle and squeal all he wanted._ He wouldn't go anywhere. Katsuki would just leave him to sink into the quicksand he was already waist-deep in.

Just when had he turned into a monster?

Really… when?

It'd felt nice, actually, to be the trigger of fun games – to start a rally and gather the kids around a toy and toss it around; it had been even more fun when the toy tended to try and get away. It had helped him socialize, right?

…Right?

The Script had told him so. He made buddies, because he wasn't sinking like Deku. He was on top, and he kept on climbing. Deku could go ahead and sink to the bottom and swallow dirt for all he cared. Katsuki's future had been set from the very beginning, and nothing could change his destiny.

Katsuki had never expected Deku's head to actually vanish beneath quicksand.

Katsuki had never expected The Script to turn on him like a rabid dog.

Katsuki had never expected everything to go so wrong so fast.

He'd never questioned his career choice in his life; but now, looking at his reflection on the balloon, he wasn't sure of anything anymore. His Script was looking straight at him, eye to eye, and he asked, more to himself than to the doctor, what was the difference between them–

"– a Villain and a Hero?"

…

He was lucky Inko hadn't taken this to court, he'd been told. He was sure his mother had said other things, but his mind was numb at the time, so he hadn't heard much during the car ride to the hospital. After the fight with his mother, and his tantrum the other night, and a few suspicious phone calls his parents made sure he was kept out of, Katsuki had been dragged over to a hospital to meet Dr. Yuuta for the first time.

This doctor wasn't the kind that would give him a check-up.

This man could end his future career with a single stamp on his papers.

" _I don't need a fucking shrink!"_ Katsuki yelled and, before he could get up from his chair and light a few explosive shots as a warning for the man to back off, the doctor's beard grew and extended across the room like a carpet, strands slithering around Katsuki's arms and legs and the chair, tying him to the seat. _"The fu – The Fuck! Motherfu–"_

Mitsuki grabbed the back of his head and shoved his head down. "Hush now!" she scolded. She sighed and rubbed the space between her brows when he just growled like a dog.

"Katsuki, please," Masaru pleaded.

He looked him in the eye and saw the message: _Please, try. Whatever it is, let us help you. Your mom's worried sick, son. You might not think she cares, but she's been crying her eyes out over this. Please, just settle down._

He looked over and saw the folds beneath her eyes. Oh, right… His parents had been cleaning up after the whole mess. At the time, he never understood why _this_ incident in particular was a big deal. He'd beaten Deku before, and no one had interfered. Sometimes, people joined in, but on Katsuki's side, because who wouldn't want to be on his side?

So why now? Why was he a monster _this_ time? Why were they all pointing fingers and pretending to be surprised when they all already knew and saw him at school and knew what he had said and done? They'd all been on his side at some point; when Deku had still been in that seat behind him. Yes. They'd been on his said, because they shared one thing in common, they liked picking on the weak: and with no weakling, he had nothing to link him to his _buddies._ The Script pointed the blaming finger at him, grabbing him by the front of his shirt and yelling in his face and he wasn't sure why he hated himself more than anyone else.

He wasn't sure about many things, like when had the doctor released him from his hold, or would he still be able to take that entrance exam, or what happened to Deku? Where was he? Or why did his brain suddenly blur words out randomly and instead think about random questions like this from time to time?

The numbness of his brain was something similar to mind control. There was no concept of time or conscience or 'I', 'him' or 'them' because the realization that maybe, just maybe, he'd been close to killing someone not a week ago. He played and replayed the scene in his head while his mouth answered the doctor on autopilot. It had been an accident, right? Or was it? He'd chased the boy, yes, but the rest was all accidental. Deku done all that himself… But then… what if Katsuki hadn't scared him? What if he hadn't gone after him? What if Deku had landed on his neck instead? What if his lackeys hadn't kept going after him? What if he'd stopped them before things had escalated–? What if–? What if–? Too many what ifs.

 _"You wanted to hurt him?"_

"Yeah."

 _"Did you?"_ the doctor asked simply, fully aware of the anxious parents in the room. He'd asked for Katsuki if he'd like if they'd leave. He answered by not giving a damn.

"Yeah."

 _"Why?"_

 _Are you really going to tell him?_ The Script mocked him. _What are you going to say when even you don't know why?_ Oh, watch me try. "He's weak. He's annoying – a fuckin' loser. He rubs me the wrong way–" _What are you doing?_ "–He ticks me off. He's a Quirkless nothing that wants–" _you're making this worse for yourself, moron!_ "–to be everything. Bastard doesn't know his fucking place and still tries to be all high and might an' shit. Nerd looks down on me. Thinks I'm a joke."

The room was silent as each person took in his words carefully.

 _"Would you hurt him again?"_

"If he gets in my way again. Yeah."

 _Should've listened to me you shit!_

…

He knew something wasn't right when his dad told him to get ready to see the doctor again the next day. During the car ride, his mother was jumping from one uninteresting subject to another. It was her way of masking _something_ while trying to keep his father busy talking as well. He knew something was up. They hadn't brought up the incident all day, and when he had mentioned Deku, his mother said he was fine and his father simply told him they had other things at hand.

His trust in his parents was thrown out the window when it seemed like they were entering the hospital from the back of the building.

"Uhh, said he'll meet us in another office back here." Katsuki wasn't fooled. His dad was a bad liar. The fact that he had to try and lie to him at all was, in itself, a red flag. A moment later he was surrounded by a number of nurses, and he had a number of red flags and alarms going off in his brain that something was clearly wrong.

His mother took him aside by the shoulders; and by the sad smile on her face, he didn't know for how long she'd hold him. "What did you get yourself into, you little brat," she teased and pinched his cheek. "Guess it can't be helped. Just go in there. We'll explain later. Don't give them a hard time!"

"The hell's going on? Don't touch me!" he snapped and looked ready to bite the nurse who'd gently touched his arm to guide him into the nearby changing room.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry we had to surprise you like this," Masaru tried to calm him, but he knew he was doing nothing to help his son's situation. They'd put him in a state of confusion and distrust, and he wouldn't blame him if he didn't believe a word he said to him right now. "Just do as they tell you. We'll explain later, I promise, Katsuki."

"Get. _Offa me–!"_

Katsuki resisted, and the nurses backed away, as if he were a cornered animal to be pitied. That only triggered the boy's destructive nature even further. How dare they assume he was scared! How dare they assume he was weak and timid and would crumble if touched!

" _Katsuki!"_

Just like that, he froze, sweaty hands clinching, seconds ticking by without any explosions going off, then, he slowly relaxed his palms. His mother had screamed. She'd screamed, just liked she'd done so when they'd fought that night before. He glared at her, and she glared back; sadness leaking through her gaze. He understood. He always had. He just never gave a damn. She'd always disapproved of his habit of showing off his awesome Quirk to anyone and everyone. She'd always disapproved of how proud of himself he was. And, she'd always disapproved of his aggressive manners, in which he always calls her out on her hypocrisy.

"Katsuki, please…"

He ignored his father's please and sharply turned his gaze away. It seemed like the whole world was against him. Who was he to trust when it felt like even his parents were blaming him for everything? First The Script, now his parents…

Why was everything so complicated? Why couldn't he remember everything normally? He'd remember for one or two seconds, but then forget and turn into a walking zombie. His mind was a scattered mess, unable to pick apart the present, past, and dreams and untangle them from one another.

In the changing room, surrounded by a number of nurses, he was instructed to hand over whatever he had in his pockets: phone, wallet, whatever that paper was. He growled and clicked his tongue impatiently when he was told to hand over his shoes and belt, which he did.

After being told to undress for a bit, he eventually realized what this was: a strip-search.

"For what?" he demanded to know. Weapons? Drugs? Why was he being searched?

"Just the correct procedure here, it's alright." No, it wasn't _alright_. This was beyond suspicious! He was sure they'd walked into the hospital. His memory was still in shambles, but he remembered! It wasn't his fault! Deku hurt himself that time! He'd hardly touched him. Heck, he'd given that boy a black eye a few years ago and no one told him to pull down his fly back then, so why now? Why did Deku suddenly matter? Why was Katsuki a monster _now,_ and not then? Why did everyone switch sides so quickly and without warning? Had there been warnings he'd missed, perhaps?

 _No. Why would everyone else matter? Just focus on yourself._

Stay the fuck out of this! You caused this whole fucking mess!

 _Me? You sure? Nah, things just turned to shit cause you stopped listening to me–_

Stop talking! I don't need to hear your goodfornothin–

 _You_ _got yourself into this shitfest. Don't go pointin' fingers when you know you fucked up._

I said. Shut up.

He didn't want to think about it… Maybe he did fuck up this time. He just wasn't sure how. He'd never gotten in trouble for injuring Deku before, so… why now? What had he done differently?

"I'll give these to your mom and dad, alright?" The nurse held out his shoes and belt in one hand, and a bag of what he assumed were his other belongings in the other. Another nurse handed him slippers, and that was a sign he'd be staying here for far longer than a few hours.

Clad in just the trousers he wore for his 'doctor visit' and his black and white skull shirt, he walked out to find his parents by the door, where they'd said they'd be, waves of worry drifted out of them.

"What's going on?" he immediately asked as his father came to give him a desperate hug.

The man let him go and his mother roughly grabbed his hair to hold him in place and gave him a quick kiss on the head, knowing he would try and get away if she didn't hold him. He swatted her hand away.

"You're staying here. You got that, squirt?" She ruffled his hair around. "We'll visit this afternoon. You better behave, you hear me?"

Katsuki couldn't believe what he was hearing. This had to be a joke. " _What?_ "

"I'll pack your things. Extra clothes. Do you need any books, son? I'm sorry I can't bring any electronics or your phone. If you need to call us just tell the nurse, alright?" his father kept on going, and Katsuki had a harder time understanding, because–

"You're dumping me?" –realization crushed him and turned his stomach inside-out.

Masaru sighed. "Katsuki…"

"Are you serious?" He was ready to scream. "It was that doc, wasn't it?" Why had he opened his mouth back then? To prove The Script wrong? To prove The Script he could write his own path and get away with it scot-free? Was his tantrum worth it? This was indeed a hospital, which meant– "You're dumping me in a loony bin! Is that fucking it?" Screw them. All of them. They didn't understand. They couldn't – wouldn't. Never!

" _Katsuki, son, please, settle down…"_

" _That's exactly it, you brat, so stop shouting so we can explain!"_

"Settle down. Please, settle down."

The family paused. Katsuki's fist tightened, ready to burn a hole in the doctor's face.

"I wouldn't do that, Katsuki Bakugo. I'd really like for us to sit down and talk it out, but, only if you want to, of course."

"Of course I don't!"

"I'm guessing you want to go home, then?" the doctor asked skimpily, but his eyes kept going back to the two parents. "You'll be sent home, as soon as you go through the necessary tests and get you on proper medication."

"What?" Katsuki shouted. "You can't keep me prisoner! You can't just confine me and think you got me where you want me!"

Katsuki's face blanked when the doctor walked along and held a door open for them to follow him.

…

He hadn't planned to listen to this man rumble about nonsense and shit Katsuki didn't care about; however, as soon as they all sat down and a well-dressed rat joined them on the sofa, things took a drastic turn.

"I did explain this to your parents; and want you to listen to want I have to say. No need to believe me or trust in me or anything, alright?" Dr. Yuuta began.

Katsuki didn't have a choice.

"I can't release you as you have been admitted to me for being violent, for continuing to show violence, and for harming individuals and admitting you are willing to do it again. If I were to release you now, and you are caught assaulting someone, it's not just you who will face consciences, but your parents will also be held accountable for allowing this behavior to continue for such a long time and they will be under investigations if necessary, and my license will be revoked, all because I let you free. Do you understand?"

Yes and no.

Numbness began to eat away at him once again.

How had his simple mistake snowballed into this?

The UA principle stood up on the sofa and placed a folder on the table between them. "It's a pleasure to meet you in person, young Bakugo. I looked through our student submission papers and I'm proud you've chosen UA as your destination," the animal said with a happy tone.

"You seem to be a very good student. High marks and good ambitions. However…" The principle put his paws together and, for a split second, Katsuki saw how the animal analyzed him through that scarred eye; picking him apart, taking a photographic memory of every muscle movement, every blink of an eye. "UA has a tight policy regarding bullying and assault towards classmates. Your history with other students, and that student in particular – Midoriya, is quite unsettling." The happy tone in his voice all but disappeared. This wasn't what the Bakugos were used to seeing on television. "I'm surprised, and mostly, upset, nobody has taken action until now. I hear the boy has been targeted due to his Quirklessness, is that correct?"

Katsuki clinched his teeth together; any harder and he'd crack them.

"Yes," Mitsuki answered for him. She sighed remembering all the times she had to scold her little Katsuki whenever he beat up Inko's kid. "After Katsuki got his Quirk, and Izuku turned out to be Quirkless, things just escalated from there."

Nedzu hummed. "Let me tell you, that kind of discrimination won't be tolerated in my school. We have Quirkless staff, deaf students, individuals with numerous disabilities who, believe it or not, are also capable of what you can achieve. You seem to miss the whole point of the heroic's system. You see yourself as stronger for winning the genetic lottery?" the mouse-like animal asked him, daring him to voice his opinion. "You _will not_ study under my school. Not like this."

Katsuki slammed his hands down against the table. His mother grabbed his shoulders. He was ready to hyperventilate.

"…can't do this."

"Please sit down."

"You can't fucking do this…"

"You can try for the entrance exam, only if you follow our conditions."

That got his attention again. They gave him time to collect himself and sit down. His mother gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder. He didn't react to it.

"Alright, for starters, we'd like for Katsuki Bakugo to stay here for at least a few days under Dr. Yuuta's care for evaluation. Put on Quirk-canceling wrist cuffs to protect the other patients here, as you tends to go trigger happy with your Quirk, unfortunately. If, and only _if_ Dr. Yuuta sees you fit enough, you will be released with the promise that you keep seeing Dr. Yuuta on regular bases, take medication if prescribed, and keep the school up-to-date with check-ups and progress. In short, we'll allow him to apply, but only if you, and you," Nedzu pointed one paw at each parent, "promise to help him get better. He's a smart student. With the right treatment and proper education, he should, hopefully, become a wonderful Hero in just a few years. Keep getting treatment and therapy talks, and for the first few weeks of his release, we'd like for him to keep the Quirk-canceling cuffs on if not on campus. We'll be in touch, and hope to make this road as smooth as possible for him."

…

It was a mess.

All of it.

Everything. Just… Everything…

He went from being _the shit_ to being _actual shit_.

He'd only been here for an hour, and he already wanted to go home. Fuck this. Fuck it all! Just… Fuck…

His bed was a rock-hard hospital bed at a corner. His closest roommate was having a beauty sleep, and there were two other beds in the room; both unmade. Great. He was sharing a room with three other people. He also noticed the rooms _didn't have doors,_ and the only doors were in the bathrooms – much to his disappointment, they didn't have locks.

The ward was extremely noisy. Fights broke out regularly, and the no-doors policy was so that no injuries could occur and nurses could get to the enraged teenagers without getting blocked.

His roommates, for the most part, seemed almost invisible. They'd just appear for a quick nap or to grab something, then vanish just as quickly. They were just as rude as Katsuki when talking, but most kept to themselves because they seemed to despise each other's company.

One guy, however, made a mistake when boredom took over, and ticking off the new guy looked oh so tempting.

Katsuki should've held off. He knew he should've. But that long-nosed bastard had it coming.

By the time the nurses had separated them and shoed away the rally that had gathered, Katsuki never saw the guy again, but because the cameras had caught him _trying_ to use his Quirk, he'd been forced to have his Quirk-canceling cuffs reinforced to protect the other patients, and to _teach him a lesson_ on abuse of power – or some shit.

…

It irked him to no end. Everyone was against him. Everyone. They'd push and shove him and poke at him and cage him and tell him one thin then tell him another thing, then tell him nothing then hide everything from him then expect from him to know everything – _and god damnit!_

 _TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG! I'M SORRY! There! Is that what you want?_ I'm. Fucking. Sorry. Take it. Fucking take it and leave me alone already, damn it. I don't know why everyone's losing their shit over him tripping over his own feet when I've done worse to 'm before. Stab a person again and again for ten fucking years and no one gave a shit, he stabs himself and _now_ you're telling me stabbing people's wrong? The fu – where were you years ago? Where was everyone years ago? The same shits who laughed at him before are the same shits crying for him now – _make up your fucking minds!_

What do I want? You ask me what do I want? I want to be a Hero! And before you tell me _save the people_ and shit, I want to be a Hero like All Might. Not a rip-off Hero. Not a Hero looking for money to wipe his ass with instead of toilet paper. I want to be a Hero that can't lose! I'll patch things like they're good as new. I'll be that hammer that'll smash them villains flat to the ground, ya hear me? Do you hear me?

The doctor, for the first time ever, seemed to have a smirk on his face. "Loud and clear."

 _TBC_

* * *

 _Notes:_

 _-There. Finally got this posted. I honestly don't care how well this turned out. With the amount of shit that's happened over here, I'm just happy I could write something. It's such a relief to pour my thoughts on here._

 _-Katsuki is usually a difficult character for me to write, so this whole chapter was insane for me._

 _-I don't usually spoon feed you guys what some of the details in here mean, but I think this one might be a little difficult for some of you, so I'll just point them out this time (or, at least, hint at some):_

 _The Script is a mirror image of Katsuki (reflection on the balloon, The Script developing red eyes and features similar to Katsuki) which distorts his sens of identity._

 _The whole chapter is cut into parts to showcase Katsuki's struggle to maintain focus, shifting from present to past_ _, when this could all be happening in the very beginning of the chapter as a jumble of memories._

 _Unbreakable Katsuki is, in fact, breakable, just like any other being. And maybe already is._

 _Nedzu's speech on disability and capabilities; followed by Katsuki's inability to use his powerful Quirk._

 _-And before you say I was too mean on him, I at least gave him a room and his situation was explained to him, while I was pretty much dumped at a hospital without any explanations and had to sleep in a_ _hallway because they didn't have rooms._

 _-Again, I will be taking my time with these chapters. I do see people asking about updates, and please know, I do plan to finish this._

 _-I know, I couldn't focus on the other characters, but I had to get the heavy stuff out of the way so hopefully can go back to Eri now._


End file.
